BCUT

[ElectricPenguin]

Does ANYONE know how to take a BCUT course? I have asked around and no one seems to know.

[vento]

Ask your Communications Officer for class schedules.

In Southern California, the class is offered a couple of times a year and it is a solid eight hours class plus a test at the conclusion of the class.

[Spaceman3750]

Ask your Communications Officer for class schedules.

In Southern California, the class is offered a couple of times a year and it is a solid eight hours class plus a test at the conclusion of the class.

Talk about overkill. If that's BCUT, I'm almost afraid to ask what ACUT is.

[jks19714]

Does your unit have a Communications Officer?  If not, an Emergency Services Officer?  They should be able to find a class already scheduled or an instructor.

In our Cadet Squadron, we have several comm folks and have a couple of BCUT classes a year. 

john

[jks19714]

Does your unit have a Communications Officer?  If not, an Emergency Services Officer?  They should be able to find a class already scheduled or an instructor.

In our Cadet Squadron, we have several comm folks and have a couple of BCUT classes a year.  And they run about 2-3 hours.  We give folks OJT during SAREXs, usually in the Wing Mobile CP.

john

[Eclipse]

Ask your Communications Officer for class schedules.

In Southern California, the class is offered a couple of times a year and it is a solid eight hours class plus a test at the conclusion of the class.

That's twice what it should be and too much for A-Cut as well.

3-4 for B, about 6 for A should more than cover it.

[ßτε]

Ask your Communications Officer for class schedules.

In Southern California, the class is offered a couple of times a year and it is a solid eight hours class plus a test at the conclusion of the class.

That would be for ACUT along with some MRO tasks. BCUT is much less.

[lordmonar]

Ask your Communications Officer for class schedules.

In Southern California, the class is offered a couple of times a year and it is a solid eight hours class plus a test at the conclusion of the class.

Talk about overkill. If that's BCUT, I'm almost afraid to ask what ACUT is.

Tell me about it!  That is my big heart burn with CAP comm.

2-3 hours max....including hands on.
90% of CAP members simply need the BCUT so they can talk on the hand held/vehicle/aircraft radios.
8 hours is just too much!

[SarDragon]

I've been teaching ROA classes in SoCal for about ten years. We used to put BCUT and ACUT and some hands-on into an 8-hour day. It worked really well. Now we farm out the BCUT to the unit Comm Officers, and the formal class we now teach is ACUT, MRO Fam & Prep, and some hands-on using a scripted scenario, and some ISRs. That takes about 7 hours, and works even better.

[vento]

Ask your Communications Officer for class schedules.

In Southern California, the class is offered a couple of times a year and it is a solid eight hours class plus a test at the conclusion of the class.

Talk about overkill. If that's BCUT, I'm almost afraid to ask what ACUT is.

For us, at least when I took it, it was the exact same thing. You take the test and pass with an average score then you get BCUT. You take the test and pass with above average score (I forget the percentage) and you get ACUT. I think the current class is slightly shorter than 8 hours because a lot of materials were removed. I can't speak for the others but as somebody new in radio comm I did actually learn quite a bit during the class.

[vento]

I've been teaching ROA classes in SoCal for about ten years. We used to put BCUT and ACUT and some hands-on into an 8-hour day. It worked really well. Now we farm out the BCUT to the unit Comm Officers, and the formal class we now teach is ACUT, MRO Fam & Prep, and some hands-on using a scripted scenario, and some ISRs. That takes about 7 hours, and works even better.

What SarDragon said. 

[SarDragon]

BTW, we have courses here in SoCal (Group 7, primarily) at least three times a year. We used to have them quarterly, but our student load went down, so we cut back the regularly scheduled classes to every four months, with three different locations, to cover the entire group. I've held extra classes a couple of times in the past two or three years to cover a unit that asks for a special class.

One other thing. Take the ACUT class, and fail the test - you get a BCUT, and are still able to do the rest of the MRO and hands-on training.

[EMT-83]

I don't remember a requirement for a BCUT test. In fact, I'm sure there isn't one.

ACUT, on the other hand, did have a written test. Poorly written questions, references to outdated regulations, outright incorrect information – but, by God, there was a test.

[arajca]

BCUT does not have a test. ACUT has a questionnaire, not a 'test'. Semantics, but the requirements for test control and administration lead National to make the change since very few comm instructors were TCOs. The result of the questionnaire - open book, 80% pass, correct to 100%.

Given that ACUT lists the questionnaire and BCUT make no mention of anything similar, it has been put forth by National that BCUT cannot have a test associated with it. 

Also, ACUT should take no more than 4 hours.

This training will normally require no more than 4 hours. If more than 4 hours of training is deemed necessary, a separate and optional class for those individuals interested in further training should be considered.

BCUT used to have similar language, with a 90 min limit, but it has been removed.

[RADIOMAN015]

Ask your Communications Officer for class schedules.

In Southern California, the class is offered a couple of times a year and it is a solid eight hours class plus a test at the conclusion of the class.

Talk about overkill. If that's BCUT, I'm almost afraid to ask what ACUT is.

Tell me about it!  That is my big heart burn with CAP comm.

2-3 hours max....including hands on.
90% of CAP members simply need the BCUT so they can talk on the hand held/vehicle/aircraft radios.
8 hours is just too much!

Wow, that's a lot of "talk" for 8 hours!!!
With the BCUT you want the member to have a "basic" understanding of the radio equipment operation/limitations, radio talk/terminology, and specific wing related information (e.g. repeater locations/channels to use).   The issue with CAP comms (and just about every other operational/ES rating) is that everyone wants the "bling" of getting various ratings, BUT most will only do the minimum required rather than trying to take advantage of all the "hands on" training opportunities that may be available.  I'm an advocate of squadron level training where the technical proficiency exists because it saves the member (travel) time & money.  So I like the idea of an on line course and than some practical training at the squadron level. 

Surely our members that are trained communicators should at least know how to ensure the radio is connected to an antenna before transmitting, know how to operate the various radios (e.g. turn on/off, change channels, scan mode, volume adjustment, solve problems), basic terminology (e.g. this is, over, out, roger, wilco, say again, etc), and have a good idea where the radio will likely work (e.g. the higher the elevation the better the VHF radio will work).       

Should be interesting to see how ICUT turns out!
RM

[lordmonar]

If it is taking you 8 hour to teach a basic user how to use an EF Johnson or an ISR.....you are not doing it right!

My problem with the Comm community is the concept of "basic" comm.

EF Johnson hand held--On/off switch, change batteries, change channels, dos and don'ts......20 minutes.
Phonetic alphabet........10 minutes
Pro-words..........20 minutes
"telephone game" (or the importance of writing things down)......10 minutes
Comm Exercise for up to ten people......... 60 minutes.

Two hours.....and you are ready to go out to the airshow/mission base/aircraft and use the radio as an ES trainee (i.e. under supervision) or get on the Comm Net as Comm Tech trainee (again under supervision).

This is not about bling.....this is about Comm stove pipeing the training.  Holding only 3 classes a year......rediculous.  It should be held at the squadron when and as needed.

Leave the indepth training for the Comm people.....but let us operators get the basic sign off and let us get on with mission.

[Al Sayre]

^^ :clap: :clap: :clap:

[Extremepredjudice]

I got my ACUT in about 4 hours... 

[HGjunkie]

I had a 7h ACUT course. Because apparently spending an hour on all of FLWG's current and upcoming communications plans, capabilities and about 50 other things was necessary. It was all useful information nonetheless, but some of the guys who were there were about to keel over from boredom. 

OTOH, I got a perfect 100 on the test afterwards.

[lordmonar]

ACUT is completely unnecessary unless you are going to be in the Comm community (squadron comm officer, CUL, etc).  You don't need to know all that stuff just to get issued a CAP radio or get your own call sign.