Okehampton Air Cadets have triumphed in a shooting contest after a year of aiming high at regional competitions.

The cadets saw 2025 out on a high, winning the Proper Job Trophy in a contest for the 22 air cadet corps in the Plymouth and Cornwall Wing of the air cadets.

This covers air cadets crops across Cornwall and Plymouth and West Devon.

Okehampton’s 2443 Squadron of the air cadets scooped the top slot, with each of the four firers in the team winning gold medals.

Collectively, they were presented with the Proper Job Trophy, which features the following inscription: “The Cornish phrase proper job is used to describe a task carried out to the absolute best of one's ability, to achieve perfection in whatever you do.’

The contest is the brainchild of Squadron Leader Tim Johns, OBE, who was the Okehampton corps’ shooting officer and is now a civilian instructor with 730 (City of Truro) Squadron.

Tim visited 2443 Squadron to present the trophy to the team and gold medals to the individual firers, Flight Sergeant Liv Walker, Cpl Brendan Miles, Cpl Felicity Pahdi and Cpl Wilbur Picarella.

This triumph followed 2443 Squadron taking part in two major shooting competitions in the South West region earlier on in 2025.

The 2443 Squadron fought hard in a contest involving all six air training wings in the South West: Plymouth & Cornwall Wing, Devon & Somerset Wing, Bristol and Gloucester Wing, Thames Valley Wing, Dorset and Wiltshire Wing and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wing

2443 Squadron’s team of Cpl Felicity Pahdi, Flight Sergeant Neve Huyton and Cpl Brendan Miles and Sgt Iris Leslie were narrowly beaten into second place after a valiant effort.

The 2443 Squadron also sent a shooting team to represent Plymouth and Cornwall Wing at the air cadets’ Regional Activities Day last year, which they won. The team were Cpl Wilbur Picarella, Flight Sergeant Neve Huyton, Cpl Brendan Miles and Cpl James Huyton.