RAF Chef – Full Time Career with Apprenticeship

The RAF Chef training program will provide you with the required organisational, time management, communication and number skills you’ll require to stay calm under pressure.

You can be employed in various environments; in military kitchens where you will work with the industrial partner to prepare hotel standard fare and provide gastronomy dining experiences for military personnel; in a field kitchen providing catering support for exercises and operations worldwide; or in an in-flight catering production kitchen producing meals for fast jet pilots, helicopter crews and large aircraft crew and passengers travelling to all corners of the globe.

With experience, you could volunteer to work in our VIP Team and cook for high-ranking officers, government ministers and even members of the Royal Family. If selected, you could compete in
culinary competitions and eventually gain an invitation to represent the Royal Air Force on the Combined Services Culinary Arts Team who compete internationally against the best industry chefs in the world.

Your day-to-day tasks will vary dependent on your role, but they will include;

• Working with the strategies of our industrial partners to prepare attractive menus that meet set standards
• Following specifications to maintain quality and control, adhering to hygiene, health and safety regulations whilst instilling a knowledge of allergens, nutrition and diets so you can cater to the diverse Royal Air Force family

• Production Chef Level 2
• Functional skills in maths and English (if required)
• On successful completion of the application and selection process, your apprenticeship will start with a 10-week Basic Recruit Training Course (BRTC) at RAF Halton in Buckinghamshire. The course is designed to help you adjust to a military environment. As well as fitness and military training, you’ll also learn about the RAF lifestyle
• Your specialist training will begin at the Food Services Training Wing at Worthy Down. This 14-week course will train you to maintain excellent standards of personal, food and kitchen hygiene whilst using specialist kitchen equipment to produce a variety of dishes
• You will also undertake a 10-day Introduction to Deployed Operations with No 3 Mobile Catering Squadron (3 MCS) where you will be trained to set up field kitchens under canvas, this skill will enable you to provide catering support to deployed operations worldwide as well as supporting exercises both based in the UK and abroad

The apprenticeship is a gateway to a full-time career in the Royal Air Force. Promotion to the rank of Corporal and beyond is dependent on successful completion of the apprenticeship and then on merit by competitive selection. As you advance through the ranks, you will have the increased opportunity to lead and direct people, managing resources and workforce within your area of work to deliver the required outputs whilst maintaining and instilling the highest standards expected within the RAF.