Thursday 18 th March 2010 was a milestone date in the history of 487 (Kingstanding and Perry Barr) Sqn as it held its' first presentation evening, and what a night it turned out to be.

The evening was held at the Royal British Legion Club in Kingstanding and over 150 cadets and guests came along to recognise the achievements of both the Sqn and its' cadets in 2009.

Guests of honour for the evening were Wg Cdr P P Ladwa, OC Warwickshire and Birmingham Wing, and Sqn Ldr Stuart Iles, Wing Staff Officer for 487 Sqn. Two former OC's of 487 Sqn, Sqn Ldr Chris Mumford and Sqn Ldr Pat McCarroll also attended along with guests from 165 Sqn and 2030 Sqn. Mr Frank Manning, County Vice Chairman of the Royal British Legion, and Mr Steve Hall, Branch Chairman of the Kingstanding Club were also welcome guests on the evening.

A number of members of the 487 Sqn Ex Cadet Association also attended and it was great to see cadets who actually joined the Sqn in 1941 attend our first presentation evening.

The evening started with an introduction from Flt Lt Brendan O'Neill, OC 487 Sqn. He introduced to the audience the members of staff currently serving at the Sqn. He then went on to introduce the members of the ex cadets association to the rest of the audience and also to introduce Mrs Joan Smith, the widow of Mr Jack Smith who sadly passed away last year. At Mr Smith's funeral, it was asked that all donations be given to 487 Sqn and the Sqn has recently received a cheque for over five hundred pounds. Flt Lt O'Neill told the audience that the Sqn was extremely grateful for this very kind donation and that they had decided to use the money replace the Sqn Standard. Flt Lt O'Neill also thanked the Civilian Committee for all that they had done in 2009, and he also detailed the changes that had happened during the year.

Flt Lt O'Neill then went on to talk about the achievements of the Sqn in 2009, particularly at the Wing Field Training Day and on the sporting field.

A total of 35 cadets attended the evening and they each marched out to receive a certificate from Sqn Ldr Stuart Iles. The Sqn's achievements in 2009 were then recognised and the following cadets were presented with trophies by Wg Cdr Ladwa:

• Collins Trophy Shooting Team CWO Adam Wilkes
  • FS Anthony Rigby
  • Sgt Joe Creamer
  • Cdt Tom Breakwell
• Individual Aircraft Recognition Cpl Robert Andrew
• Senior Boys Trophy – Swimming Cpl Kerry Whiting, Swimming Captain

Following on from the presentation of the above awards, it was now time to present the five main awards for achievement in 2009. Flying Officer Simon Jennings firstly thanked the Royal British Legion club for letting them have the hire of the room for free. The club had also made a generous donation of £120 towards the evening and it was decided by the Sqn to buy two new trophies, a sporting achievement shield and also a service to 487 Sqn cup.

The first award, the sporting achievement award, was presented by Mr Frank Manning, County Vice Chairman of the Royal British Legion. The second award, the service to 487 Sqn award, was presented by Mr Steve Hall, Branch Chairman of the Kingstanding Royal British Legion club. The other three awards, best cadet – drill, best flight and the best overall cadet were all presented by Wg Cdr Ladwa. The winners were:

• Sporting Achievement Award Cpl Kerry Whiting
• Service to 487 Sqn Award CWO Adam Wilkes
• Best Cadet – Drill Cdt Tom Bell
• Best Flight B Flight
• Best Overall Cadet FS Anthony Rigby

Wg Cdr Ladwa gave a short speech to end the evening. He thanked all the cadets and staff of 487 Sqn for all their hard work in 2009. He further commented that he thought that the Air Training Corps was by far the best youth organisation in the UK and that its cadets provided a service to the whole of society, not just the Air Cadet Organisation.

Mrs Amanda Walden who is a member of the Civilian Committee had provided a wonderful buffet which was eagerly eaten by all the guests. The evening was concluded with a raffle which raised over £200 for the Sqn.

Flt Lt Brendan O'Neill, OC 487 Sqn commented “This has been a fantastic evening. I really didn't expect this many people to attend what is our first presentation night. I would like to thank all the staff who have made this night possible and I would like to give a special thank you to Amanda Walden for putting on such a wonderful buffet. It was great to see the ex cadets association again and we look forward to seeing them again when we have our new standard dedicated”.

Special thanks go to Sgt Sarah Cotton, who was the official photographer.