University of Birmingham Air Squadron complete dry triathlon for the Fund

On 3 July, members of the University of Birmingham Air Squadron completed a dry triathlon to raise money for the RAF Benevolent Fund.

The team of 30, a mixture of students and staff, reached their target of 1824.5km by cycling, rowing and running to equal the combined distance of all University Air Squadrons across the country.

The challenge began at 8:00 AM, and the team excelled their target, reaching 2000km by 5:00 PM.

Marcia Jenkins, 20, joined the University of Birmingham Air Squadron as an Officer Cadet in December 2023. She said: “We chose to raise money for the RAF Benevolent Fund to honour lost friends of the Air Squadrons following the passing of Squadron Leader Mark Long earlier this year, who was once a UBAS student, where he first learnt to fly. Charities such as the Fund, are vital in preserving their memory, honouring their service, and supporting their loved ones thereafter.”

Marcia continued: “A part of the University Air Squadron's core pillars is charity work, so I took on the responsibility of organising this event and am very proud of its success. All those that participated did an incredible job fundraising for the Fund and showed key teamwork and camaraderie, that as a Squadron we always strive to achieve and maintain.

“It was great to see the clear determination on everyone's faces to push that bit further, boosting each other's morale and still managing after a day’s hard work to have smiles on our faces. It was an incredible day and makes me proud to be a Blue Lion!”

Marcia and the team have raised over £1000 for the Fund. You can donate to the team’s fundraiser on JustGiving.