Royal Canadian Navy to examine crew mix for Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels

By: David Pugliese, Defence Watch 

The Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels were originally to be entirely crewed by reservists. But over the years that has changed.

HMCS Moncton sits at anchor in Pond Inlet, Nunavut. CAF File Photo (2015)

In a recent interview with Defence Watch, Vice Admiral Ron Lloyd, the head of the Royal Canadian Navy, explained what is happening with the MCDV crews and what will take place in the future. Here is what he had to say:

“Just recently we’ve taken a look at our experience with the MCDVs since their introduction. When we introduced that ship, we said we would have a reserve crewing model; my assessment would be that it probably worked for about the first five years. And then after that, essentially, rather than having a part-time crewing model, we ended up going to basically a full-time sailor.

We took a look at the training and what was required and we were always short of engineers. I think the initial crewing model was extraordinarily logical at the time we went with the reserve crewing model. Over the last several years it’s become clear that it’s unsustainable.”

Lloyd said about two years ago the RCN introduced the 60/40 construct. That saw the MCDV crews made up of 60 percent reserves, 40 percent regular force. “It’s been tremendously popular because the reserves are learning a lot from the regular force, and the regular force are learning a lot from the reserves,” Lloyd explained. “For a regular force sailor to be exposed to those leadership opportunities early in their career, it’s a great developmental opportunity for them.”

So what comes next on the MCDV crewing issue?

“We will continue to look at what the best mix is in terms of regular (and) reserve, recognizing that, as the Chief of Defence Staff and the Minister have said, reserves are more of a part-time, strategic augmentation force,” Lloyd explained. “Currently one could argue that the crewing model for our MCDVs isn’t in keeping with leadership intent. So we’ll be looking at that over the next little bit.”

Canada’s Ragged Reserves have too few vehicles, little ammo and now...no radios

By: Christie Blatchford

Now, it’s radios that Canadian reserve units are expected to do without, probably until the summer of 2017.

The army recently took away the old radios because it’s replacing them, Postmedia sources say, but with the usual staggering incompetence, failed to synch the clawback with the acquisition of the new ones.

Ergo, no radios until July of next year.

Without radios, soldiers on training or exercise in the field won’t be able to communicate with one another, which rather defeats the ostensible goal of having part-time soldiers who are as well-trained as full-time or regular soldiers.

CBC: Thunder Bay Reservists during an Exercise in 2015

Mind you, that may matter less than it should because there are fewer and fewer such courses and exercises available to reserve soldiers anyway — even though such things are a draw and mean a paycheque for young men and women off from school for the summer.

As well, many units have fewer vehicles available to them because they’re either rusting out or unserviceable — or because mechanics can’t be trained because regulations decree that they can only trained by regular-force members and there aren’t enough of those around.

Most cruel is that the reserves are being deliberately starved and the culprit starving them is, as usual, the bureaucracy of the regular (or full-time) army itself

In other words, for Canada’s beleaguered militia — the 117 reserve units, many of them among the country’s oldest and most storied regiments, based in 130 cities and towns across the country — it is in the immortal words of Yogi Berra, deja vu all over again.

Most cruel is that the reserves are being deliberately starved and the culprit starving them is, as usual, the bureaucracy of the regular (or full-time) army itself.

But if the situation is dire, as reserve leaders say, it is also familiar.

The gutting of the militia is an old, familiar story. It always happens the same way.

First, reserve units have their quotas cut.

This last happened in 2010, when Brigadier-General John Collin, then the commander of Joint Task Force Central Area (this means Ontario) held a series of town hall meetings at which he said the army was looking to chop 5,000 reservists.

That’s pretty much what they’ve done.

As federal Auditor-General Michael Ferguson said in a spring report on the state of the army reserve, units have lost about 1,000 soldiers a year for several years, and instead of the 21,000 reservists the army purported to fund in its budget of last year, there were only 13,944.

Then, since recruiting is always laughably slow (last I looked, it took an average 180 days to enrol a soldier for a part-time job), the bodies coming in the door don’t begin to fill the holes left by those who are going out even by way of normal attrition.

Eventually, some of the regiments either run out of bullets (seriously, that happened once, years ago) or courses to send their soldiers on or leaders to run them, and someone like me writes about it, at which point, government and regular army folks who control the purse strings for the reserves deny or minimize the crisis, swear there’s nothing to see here, and move on.

And while governments have been more or less inept or uninterested, the problem is not one created by politicians; rather, by craven officials in the regular army who see any increase in militia size or power as a threat and who even get away with ignoring the will of the government of the day.

The previous Conservative government, for instance, promised to increase the reserves by 10,000, reneged on that promise, then slashed reserve pay budgets and made things worse. Then-defence minister Peter MacKay ordered his department to develop policies to stop militia paycheques being used for other purposes, but never got an answer, let alone a result.

As the military scholar Jack English wrote in a scathing report several years ago, for the military, compliance with government orders has come to be seen as a voluntary matter.

Ten years ago, the Canadian army, in the form of Task Force Orion in Kandahar — the core regiment the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, but with plenty of reservists too — was on the ground in Afghanistan.

That wonderfully nimble battle group, headed by then-Lieutenant-Colonel Ian Hope, was punching way above its weight and about to suffer some of its most significant losses.

And a century ago, on July 1, in the village of Beaumont-Hamel, France, 700 members of the First Newfoundland Regiment were being slaughtered in the first phase of the Battle of the Somme.

Yet with these two historic events on the military calendar, one modern and one from the First World War, the biggest mission on the Canadian Forces’ radar today is Op Honour, the purported “fight” against harmful and inappropriate sexual behaviour in the military.

How very sad that this army — under-led, over-managed and risk-averse as it is — may just be up for that fearsome task.

cblatchford@postmedia.com

Canadian Rangers Receiving New Uniforms

By Peter Moon

Defence Watch Guest author

The Canadian Army is issuing several items of new clothing for Canadian Rangers across the Far North of Ontario.

“The clothing they are getting is in their traditional red colour,” said Lieutenant-Colonel Matthew Richardson, commanding officer of the 3rd Canadian Ranger Patrol Group, which commands the 650 Rangers in 23 First Nation communities in northern Ontario. “People will know that they are clearly Rangers in their new uniforms because it’s all in Ranger red.”

The new uniforms are a red fleece, red raincoat, and a red winter outer jacket

The Rangers are part-time army reservists who wear a traditional red “hoodie” as part of their distinctive military uniform.

The first uniforms were delivered to the Peawanuck and Attawapiskat patrols during a visit to the two communities by Colonel Richardson. He said they will soon be delivered to other Rangers across the north. The new uniforms supplement the military kit already issued to all Rangers.

“They have the gear they wear out on the land and that gear is warmer than the new items of clothing,” Richardson said. “The purpose of the new uniforms is not so much for day to day events. It’s more something to wear at ceremonial and community events and for some training events. In addition to the new uniforms we’ve thrown in new hats, t-shirts, and hoodies for them.”

(Sergeant Peter Moon is the public affairs ranger for 3rd Canadian Ranger Patrol Group at Canadian Forces Base Borden.)

Photo above: New Ranger uniforms arrive at Peawanuck airport.

Photo below: Ranger Denise Patrick and Master Corporal Pamela Chookomoolin show of their new uniforms to Winisk First Nation Chief Edmund Hunter in Peawanuck.





Photos by Peter Moon

Army Completes STAGED RESPONSE-16

DND Press Release

Approximately 190 Canadian Army soldiers, the majority of whom were reservists, took part in a training exercise that tested their readiness for domestic operations. The Army’s annual Exercise STAGED RESPONSE 16 took place from 6 to 8 May, 2016 within several regions throughout Atlantic Canada.

Exercise STAGED RESPONSE 16 is a command post exercise under the direction of the 5th Canadian Division and focused on the challenges soldiers would face when dealing with a major disaster that might occur within the Region. The training is intended to challenge the leadership, enhance teamwork and the intellectual capacity of the 5th Canadian Division Territorial Battalion Groups – key Groups that could be deployed to support civilian authorities in the event on an emergency situation.

The ability to employ military forces in response to major emergencies in Canada remains a core part of the Canada First Defence Strategy. Exercise STAGED RESPONSE 16 provides the venue for the Canadian Army to train within realistic contemporary situations in response to disasters and emergencies that require the Canadian Army to offer support to civil authorities and other government departments.

“The Canadian Armed Forces stand ready to offer assistance in support of civilian authorities during any crisis in Canada, including natural disasters, wherever and whenever required. As we all know, major emergencies and natural disasters can happen at any time and often with very little notice or warning. For that reason, we create opportunities like Exercise STAGED RESPONSE to give ourselves a chance to test our ability to respond as quickly as possible when faced with a challenging emergency" said, Brigadier General C.J. Turenne, Commander, 5th Canadian Division

The Exercise focused on training reservists from 36 Canadian Brigade Group and 37 Canadian Brigade Group on the Force Generation process, including the Territorial Battalion Group stand-up, battle procedure, operational training, deployment and planning required in the early stages of assigned missions.

Canadian Army Reserve Responds to AG Report

DND Press Release
Ottawa – National Defence / Canadian Army

Lieutenant-General Marquis Hainse, Commander of the Canadian Army, issued the following statement today regarding the 2016 Auditor General Spring Report:

“On behalf of the Canadian Army, I thank the Auditor General for his advice and recommendations in his report on the Canadian Army Reserve. I accept this report and will address its recommendations.

“The Canadian Army Reserve is an integrated part of the Canadian Army that contributes to the success of operations at home and abroad. This has been proven across the world most notably in Afghanistan over the last decade and here in Canada as recently as last summer with the forest fires in Saskatchewan. Equally important, the Army Reserve provides a footprint in over one hundred Canadian communities across Canada. Over the next year, the Canadian Armed Forces will consider the personnel pressures that are affecting attrition and retention and develop a plan to keep the Army Reserve strong and healthy. We are now in the process of implementing strategies to reduce a number of challenges identified in the recruiting process to make sure we have the right people for the future.

“Training is fundamental to operational excellence and I appreciate that the Auditor General has recommended areas where we can further improve. We are putting measures in place to continue to ensure that each reservist is prepared for any mission, domestic or international. Any gaps in training will be assessed and resolved before deployment and the completion of Army Reserve training objectives will be confirmed annually. We are also currently developing a plan to address the accessibility of equipment available for Reserve training as identified in the report.

“The Canadian Army takes the stewardship of public resources seriously and continuously works to improve its funding model. The Canadian Army is currently revising the Army Reserve funding model as part of its planned cyclical review process. The recommendations of the Auditor General will serve to inform this review and ensure the funding model is more transparent and accountable to the Government of Canada. The Canadian Army will work to ensure that funding is allocated in an efficient, responsive and timely fashion.

“Finally, I would like to emphasize that the Canadian Army always strives for excellence and we will continue to work at finding solutions to ensure that our soldiers are well trained, well lead and well equipped.”

Auditor General Highlights Issues with Reserve Force

By David Pugliese, The Ottawa Citizen

Auditor General Michael Ferguson released a number of reports this morning. A couple of his findings deal with the Canadian Forces. Here are mini summaries of those reports as outlined by theCanadian Press news service (more details to follow as they come):

“Individual units of the Canadian Army’s reserve units lack sufficient soldiers — just 14,000 instead of a needed 21,000 — as well as access to key equipment for domestic missions and clear guidance on training, counter to National Defence’s stated goal.

Between the 2012–13 and 2014–15 fiscal years, the number of Canadian Army reservists has dwindled by about five per cent, or about 1,000 soldiers per year.”

More from Canadian Press:

Michael Ferguson’s latest audit conducted a detailed examination of the problems faced by the military’s part-time branch and found that even though there are 21,000 positions on the books, only 13,944 reservists are considered active and ready for service.

The federal government’s stated goal is to have a reserve force of 27,000.

The audit goes into detail about how National Defence has not only failed to recruit for the part-time force, but reservists are quitting at a rate faster than they can be replaced and doing so before they are fully trained.

“In late 2015, National Defence set a goal to increase the Army Reserve by 950 soldiers (five per cent) by 2019. In our opinion, this goal will be difficult to achieve given the present rate of attrition,” said the auditor’s report.

The sweeping review also looked at training and found that many reservists don’t receive certain basic weapons training, such as the use of a pistol or grenade launcher.

They have been woefully unprepared for some duties in combat zones, such as convoy escort and force protection, and ill-equipped for missions at home like responding to forest fires and floods.

When there is a domestic emergency, reserve units are expected to assemble trained units of up to 600 soldiers, but Ferguson’s report noted that they were thrown into the field over the last few years — specifically in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba — without everything they needed, including essential items.

“When we reviewed these reports, we found many instances of key equipment lacking, such as reconnaissance vehicles, command posts, and communications equipment,” the audit said.

“We found that the Canadian Army has not defined the list of equipment that all army reserve units should have for training their soldiers and teams for domestic missions. This means that army reserve units may have to rely on other Canadian Armed Forces units to provide this equipment, but we were told that it is often not available.”

The former Harper government was keen on highlighting the participation of reservists, notably the Canadian Rangers, in annual Arctic exercises. In 2013, it staged a series of photo-ops with then-prime minister Stephen Harper shooting rifles and mingling with the troops, who are drawn from indigenous northern communities.

The audit says the army made a special effort to equip them, but even there Ferguson’s report found support wanting.

“Following recent training exercises, these groups reported that they did not always have access to the equipment they needed to be self-sufficient, such as reliable communications and vehicles larger than light snowmobiles,” said the report.

National Defence, in its response, agreed with the criticism and said it is working on the equipment issue.

Ferguson also tore a strip off the government over how it balances and pays for reservists, some of who are being called up to full-time duty. Under the law, a part-time soldier can be converted to full-time status for periods of between 180 days and three years.

But those jobs can be —and often are — renewed for longer periods of time. It was one of the criticisms in retired lieutenant-general Andrew Leslie’s 2011 report, which was meant to overhaul administration at National Defence.

Ferguson’s report goes a step further showing that as many as 1,704 part-time soldiers are on full-time duty, but the money to pay for them is being taken from the reserve budget.

“This means that the Canadian Army spent about 27 per cent of its overall army reserve pay and operating expenses on these full-time contracts, leaving less available for other army reserve activities,” said the report.

Canadian Rangers teaching Attawapiskat youth outdoor survival skills

Colin Perkel, The Canadian Press
Published Wednesday, April 20, 2016 1:34PM EDT

ATTAWAPISKAT, Ont. -- Out in the bush, a few kilometres from the First Nations reserve of Attawapiskat, about three dozen young Cree are learning basic outdoor survival skills -- from a Canadian Armed Forces soldier.

It's a tiny but important contribution by Canada's military to a community reeling from a series of suicides and suicide attempts by despairing children and teens, who all too often see little or no future for themselves.

Sitting in a semi-circle around a newly stoked fire, the giggling young men and women are paying various degrees of attention, as 2nd Lt. Wesley Jenkins, with the 3rd Canadian Ranger Patrol Group, speaks.

"I just want to talk about what to do if you ever find yourself in a position that you go out on the land and you find yourself lost," he tells his young charges, pausing as one of the teens' cellphones rings jarringly.

"Hey folks, if I'm talking, I need you to not."

This is hardly boot camp, with rigid rules and regimented discipline. It's not what's called for. Along with survival training and sleeping and eating outdoors is chat about combatting harassment or abuse, and talk about cultural practices that are disappearing.

Some of the youths chopping or gathering wood, erecting shelters or putting up a teepee are among the most vulnerable in Attawapiskat, a town normally comprised of about 2,100 people.

Now, it's almost a ghost town in light of the annual two-week Goose Break, when many families head out to camps to hunt geese returning from the south. School is out.

It's also a particularly risky time for those unable to go on the traditional hunt, because parents are working, have no money, or are perhaps too strung out to care or cope.

With little to do, nowhere safe to go, and few other supports, boredom can lead them down a tragically well-worn path to self-destruction.

"It's better to be out on the land," says Wilbert Shisheesh, 15, as he helps prepare the bush camp. "These activities keep me busy -- nothing to do while we're back home in town."

Shisheesh says he himself avoids the "kind of sad" trap of substance abuse some of his peers have fallen into.

Attawapiskat is one of 20 communities that Jenkins and his colleagues visit as instructors for the Canadian Rangers, Canada's reservist military presence in the North, and the Junior Rangers.

"With all the recent goings-on in Attawapiskat, we are here to continue to run our youth program as we have in the past, and to try to take some pressure off the community," says Jenkins, from Mississauga, Ont.

"It gets them out on the land with people they know and trust -- the Canadian Rangers -- (and) with their friends. It gives them an opportunity to look beyond what's been happening recently."

The camp is the kind of rare organized activity that community leaders say would go a long way towards helping the teens stay out of trouble. But despite this week's federal government promise to help build a youth community centre, Shisheesh says he may not be around to see that happen.

There's no future for himself in the isolated fly-in town, he says.

"No, I don't see it," he says. "I don't think too much about what I want to be. I just try to keep myself busy."

CAF Reservist Shortfall

In the Ottawa Citizen this week, the CAF is experiencing a short fall, both in regular forces, and an even larger Reservist shortfall.

Here is the article written by David Pugliese, Defence Watch

Reserve Members from Montreal Territorial Battalion Group participate in winter warfare training in Laval, Quebec during Exercise QUORUM NORDIQUE on January 23, 2016. Photo: CAF Combat Camera SJ03-2016-0015-07

The Department of National Defence’s Plans and Priorities report highlighted major issues with the Canadian Forces Reserves. The latest figures indicate a shortfall of 5,293 reservists. The total reserve strength is now 21,707.

Why has this happened?

Here is what the report states:

“The Reserve Force is a unique and valued component of the CAF. The Primary Reserve is currently below the Government of Canada-directed average paid strength due to a higher than forecasted attrition and challenges in meeting recruiting quotas. Mitigating actions are underway to improve recruiting success and to reduce voluntary attrition in order to re-establish and expand the Primary Reserve’s strength by 1,500 to a Government-authorized 28,500 personnel.”

“In addition, the CAF Regular Force recruiting plan includes the annual component transfer of 800 personnel from the Primary Reserve. Institutionally, a major review of Primary Reserve requirements will continue so as to ensure the allocation and employment of personnel is consistent with Defence priorities, is sustainable and remains within Government of Canada direction.”

The report also points to the percentage of reserve personnel occupations considered “manageable or healthy.” The target that the Canadian Forces was striving for in this regard was between 91 to 100 per cent. The actual number reached was 59 per cent, according to the report.

How is the DND/CF going to deal with this issue? Here is DND’s view from the report:

“For the Canadian Army Reserve, there is currently some geographic disparity in the number of soldiers unavailable to fulfill the requirements of the service. As a result, the Canadian Army will initiate a Regeneration Plan to determine the cause of personnel pressures linked to attrition and retention, with a view to producing actionable recommendations.

Overall the RCAF Air Reserve manning is at about 84 percent of its desired strength, which depicts a fairly healthy Air Reserve Force at this time, however the challenges to growth include higher than anticipated attrition rates, an aging population, and current recruiting processes. Mitigation strategies in place to help meet desired strength levels include dedicating an Air Reserve Chief Warrant Officer to address recruiting issues at the higher levels, as well as the development of alternative attraction and retention strategies, tailored by region where necessary.

By the close of year, 33 percent of RCN Naval Reserve classifications were considered healthy and meeting the established Reserve Manning Requirement (RMR). In light of the ongoing DND and CAF initiative to redefine the role of a strategic reserve coupled with the RCN review of the Naval Reserve occupational structure, a conscientious decision was made to target the sustainment of its current manning level as opposed to trying to achieve full RMR. For the 2014-15 recruiting period, the RCN achieved 75 percent of the initial established recruitment goal.”

Those who have been keeping an eye on the situation have raised a number of concerns that they believe led to the shortfall.

Retired colonel John Selkirk of the group Reserves 2000, which lobbies on behalf of reservists, told the Canadian Press that the problem has been building for years. He blamed the Conservative government’s cutting of reserve training budgets and an ineffective recruiting system that is geared towards bringing former full-time military personnel into the reserves. In addition, a change in how reservist trades are selected contributed to the problem, he added.

“Is it any wonder the militia is under strength? Not at all,” Selkirk told Canadian Press.

Election 2015: Harper Promises Increase in Reserve Force

Today at a Campaign stop in Fredericton, New Brunswick Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced that if the Conservatives are re-elected, they would increase the number of Reserves in the Canadian Armed Forces from 24,000 to 30,000 within the next four years. That is almost a decade faster than the current Canadian Defense Strategy, which lists 2028 as the date for the Reserves to hit the 30,000 troop level.

The Prime Minister announced that a Conservative government would streamline the recruitment process for Reserves, and more to a more Central training system in Ontario and the Great Lakes region, so Reserves can train closer to home.

Such a surge will help increase the effectiveness of the Canadian Armed Forces, especially in response to Canada's Sovereignty needs, national emergencies (floods, and forest fires), and to help protect Canada's coastal and offshore waters.

In the 2011 Election the Conservatives took 8 of the 10 Seats in New Brunswick, and he is hoping to do just as well this time around. Canada's largest Eastern Military Base is CFB Gagetown located just outside of Fredericton.

To read the original CBC News Article: Stephen Harper Pledges Reserve Increase