K is for Khrushchev

Although the former Soviet leader has only a peripheral connection to this story.

On 18 April 1956 Soviet leaders, Marshal Bulganin and Nikita Khrushchev, arrived in Portsmouth on a ten day state visit aboard the cruiser, Ordzhonikidze accompanied by two destroyers the Sovershenny and the Smotryashchie. The event is memorable because of the disappearance, on the second day, of a retired Royal Navy diver (aka. Frogman). It is widely believed that he had been hired to examine what were thought to be advanced technical aspects of the cruiser's hull. This act of espionage, though denied by the government, caused a diplomatic row.

The official version of events, according to a government press release 10 days later, was that the frogman, Lionel Crabb, was conducting trials of underwater equipment in near by Stokes Bay when something went wrong leading to the loss of his life.

I remembered this event when I learned, some time in the summer of 1957, that the school's Army Cadet Force unit was to take part in a summer camp at Alverstoke on Stokes Bay.

For those whose education takes place in a day school the evening hours and weekends offer opportunities for activities at home and in the local community. Sport inevitably occupies a significant portion of this time for many. For others, various youth organisations provide the chance to learn useful skills and experience physical and mental challenges. At boarding school the hours after lessons were similarly occupied. We could indulge hobbies like stamp collecting and model aircraft construction. For boys aged between 10 and 13 there was a branch of the Boy Scouts where we learned first aid and discovered the joys of sleeping under canvas and cooking over a camp fire.

Once we became older the Army Cadet Force provided a more adult version of this, with the addition of “square bashing”: marching in formation. We learned to look after our uniforms, to dismantle, clean and reassemble a machine gun, and to fire a rifle at a target. We took part in simulated battles in the school grounds, but the summer camp, based in a real army camp, gave us the chance to do all of the above at an enhanced scale.

The camp occupied the first week of the summer holidays. Boys who lived close to the school traveled home as usual when school broke up on the Thursday, then made their own way to Portsmouth and thence to Alverstoke on the following Monday. I was one of a small number whose journeys home and back would each occupy a full day. We constituted an 'Advance Party', trave

ling straight from school to Alverstoke to spend the weekend getting to know the camp and its environs.

I shall never forget the mock battle using blank ammunition in our Royal Enfield 303 rifles. When it was over we were lined up with our rifles pointed skywards and each of us ordered to pull the triggers one at a time from left to right. This was to ensure that no bullets remained in the breach when the weapons were returned to the store. I knew that I had not discharged all of my ammunition so was the only one not surprised when the sequence of clicks was interrupted by a BOOM when my turn came.

That week we were given a taste of army life, preparing and cooking our own food and washing the utensils after meals as well as more strenuous activities such as the assault course and a 10 mile route march. But there were opportunities to swim in the sea and an afternoon trip across the Solent to Ryde on the Isle of Wight. I learned much from this experience, not least the ability to 'march' – walking upright, tummy pulled in (in modern jargon, 'core engaged'), shoulders back, head upright – has stood me in good stead. Posture is all important when walking. Slouching can do untold damage to your spine.

In the post war years all young men were obliged to undertake two years of military service soon after their 17^th birthday. The activities of the ACF were a good introduction to what awaited us. I was fortunate because my 'call-up' was deferred until I had completed my apprenticeship. By that time National Service had been abolished so my time in the ACF was my only experience of life in the armed forces. During the recent general election in the UK there was talk of reintroducing something similar though not restricted to military service, with aspects of community work being included among the options. The suggestion was not well received by the UK press and public. Personally I can see many possible benefits in resurrecting the concept of 'service', enabling young people to develop new skills and work closely with individuals from different backgrounds to their own.

Here in Ireland students who have completed the Junior Cycle examinations (equivalent to the UK's GCSE 'O' level), have the opportunity to join a 'Transition Year' programme before embarking on the two year Leaving Certificate course. This provides a variety of work experience, project work and boot camps as an introduction to real life problem solving. It is also a chance to learn first hand about a chosen profession before committing to an appropriate course of study.

Are you involved in youth training programmes? Do you believe that a period of compulsory national service would benefit the participants and society as a whole?