Cadets make a final leap

Jumping out of a plane into the darkness of night is an experience 19-year-old Scott Barbe described as "jumping into a black hole."

Barbe is retiring from the 2912 Sudbury Irish Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps after six years with the organization, but before he aged out, he and fellow cadet Nik Bergeron completed one of the most difficult courses of all, and earned their parachutist wings.

Barbe, a Master Warrant Officer and Bergeron, a Chief Warrant Officer, were two of 45 cadets from across Canada to complete the course in August this year. After weeks of eligibility training and pre-training courses, the two Greater Sudbury cadets were able to jump out of a "perfectly good aircraft" five times, including once at night.

"The first jump, you really tend to question yourself," Barbe said. "I remember I've always told myself I wanted to do this course, I wanted to be part of the airborne brotherhood - the parachutists. But when you're in that plane and you see the door open and you kinda just look at how every thing's just the size of your thumb, you really tend to question yourself, and are wondering why you're jumping out of a perfectly fine aircraft."

Barbe was the "second man" on the first jump, and his friend, Bergeron, was first.

"We've been great friends ever since we began the cadet program. When I saw him just run off that platform, I just kinda thought to myself 'oh my God, what have I signed up for?' But once the jump master — the guy telling us to go and the one who checks our equipment — once he says go, your mind shuts off and your training takes over. Once you leave the platform, your mind kicks back in and wonders 'what are you doing?'"

"What I hated most was probably getting out of the plane. It's the free fall. You fall about 70 feet before your chute fully opens. It's just rushing wind, probably the noisiest thing I've ever heard in my life."

Once the parachute is open, though, it's completely silent, Barbe said. He called it one of the most peaceful moments of his life.

"The first jump really takes a lot of fear out of you. It's just one hell of an experience."

When he did his night jump the next day, he said it was a moonless, starless night, with cloud cover above and blackout conditions below.

"When they opened up the (plane) door, I couldn't tell if the door was open or closed. The only thing that told me the door was open was two glow sticks attached to the end of the ramp. When we jumped, it felt like jumping into a black hole.”

Thirty cadets were selected from across Ontario to enter the selection course at CFB Trenton. Only 15 of the cadets made it past the selection course, and were joined at Trenton by cadets from across Canada. Of the 50 cadets who entered the course, seven dropped out and two were replaced. Forty-five cadets made it through.

"We did probably about a thousand push ups a day for the first week, and we also did running. Just really physically intense exercises. At one point we did a nine kilometre in 30 degree (Celsius) plus weather."

After two weeks of training, the cadets began two weeks of parachutist training, joining reservists and enlisted members of the Canadian Forces. According to Barbe, the intense physical training continued, but also now included parachutist training, such as flight procedures, rigging, exiting the aircraft, landing, and packing up after landing.

Because he is now 19, Barbe has aged out of the cadet program. He said he is considering enlisting as a possibility for his future, but he is sad the cadet experience is over.

"It's the camaraderie that separates it from everything," he said of the cadet corps. “There's nothing like it.”