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Unlike the professional members of this forum I only played at soldiers. At least that is the way that I see my Militia service during the 1980s.
However I did have an opportunity to go to Gagetown and take Phase III training along with the real soldiers: a rare privilege for a MITCP officer. While there I learned a bunch of stuff, some inconsequential stuff like the weight of an FNC1A1 complete with sling, bayonet and 20 round magazine attached. And some stuff of real value, such as when you aren’t sure pretend you are. People want to believe that somebody knows what they are doing. (Dropped off along Shanks Road at 0 Dark 30 with my syndicate for a night navigation exercise, fumbling with bindings on banger boards while everybody else has competently slipped into theirs and are now arguing about where the heck we are, stand up, lead off and say “Right, this way, so-and-so with such-and-such, whatsisname stay with me.” Got lucky. Guessed right.)
Also discovered a rare phenomenon pertaining to the radio. It had magical properties.
The way the course was run syndicate leader got the radio. Everybody else tagged along behind. Last man invariably lagging, a long way from 5 metre spacing, no clue as to where they were, moaning and whining as he went. It seemed to be a requirement for the position. Leader spends his time yelling come on keep up.
Change legs.
Last man gets the radio. Ldr drops to 2nd, 2nd to 3rd, 3rd to Last. He starts lagging. The guy that couldn’t keep up without the radio, suddenly, magically finds that he is 40 metres ahead of the syndicate and in yelling come on keep up. Miraculous.
Later, I observed similar effects in the absence of the radio and concluded the magical result had less to do with the power of the radio and more to do with the power of responsibility.
On to the Air Force.
A lot has been said about the Air Force and its 48 fighter jocks and how they don’t seem to want to play with the Army or the Navy. Some guys that do work with the Army and the Navy seem to think they might be better off changing uniforms full time. Perhaps they might.
On the other hand perhaps the problem is that the Air Force brass has constantly seen its responsibilities taken from it. Its lunch been eaten if you like. That does not tend to make for happy individuals.
Perhaps the answer is NOT to take responsibilities away but instead to add to the responsibilities.
Consider 4 circles
The Heartland or Settled Canada (cities, villages, farms, roads, railways and such)
Sovereign Canada (trackless wastes full of vast exploitable riches etc etc reaching out to whatever we can claim under law)
Lines of Communications with the Rest of the World (the high seas)
Expeditionary Canada (Canada the good saving the world from itself and scoring points in the process)
The Heartland can be reached by truck on high speed highways and there are people scattered all over the place that are willing to help. Not much chance of being hit by a bullet so little need for armour and big guns but lots of need for bodies to help and control situations. A great place for a Militia to help out the civilian authorities like the RCMP. They need a little stiffening from full time soldiers and airmen, but the threats the face will either be large crowds poorly armed and organized or small bodies well armed and organized. Both will be faced infrequently. Part time soldiers to deal with the occasional emergencies and a small force of well-trained and available regs would probably get the job done.
Skip Sovereign Canada for a minute.
Lines of Communications – the high seas, blue water, the Navy. Keeping pirates, slavers, drug runners, and illegal arms shippers at bay. The traffic cops of the sea lanes. Secondary function making sure that Expeditionary Canada gets to where it is going and comes back safely. A job for the Navy with help from the Air Force in helicopters. No long runways at sea.
Expeditionary Canada. Boots on the ground in foreign lands. Primarily and Army force with some Air Force assistance – for planning purposes it might be better not to count on having long hard runways and a secure fuel supply. Better to assume that support is going to come from Helicopters and the Artillery.
Now back to Sovereign Canada. As in the Heartland the threat is likely to be small bodies, some well trained, some not so much. They are also scattered over an incredibly large area. Where in the Heartland the countryside is under constant observation from busybody neighbours and the local constabulary the sovereign lands are largely unobserved. The same is true of the approaches.
Sovereign Canada demands constant observation and occasional response. The response however can be anything from photographing a polluter, to rescuing a downed aircraft, to interdicting a foreign fishing/mining/smuggling operation, to occasionally dealing with armed individuals and groups that choose not to accept the governments authority. To meet all these needs requires multiple capabilities. These capabilities can be duplicated and scattered widely or else, with good transportation they can be concentrated and deployed as required.
This job, part of the job that Canada Command is being tasked with, seems to me to be ideally suited to the Air Force. Satellites, Radars, Air Defence and Search and Rescue are all primarily their job now in any case. Add in responsibility for a brigade of light troops configured for platoon/company operations in Canadian territory as well as the Rangers.
All of a sudden Air Force commanders now have to figure out how to deploy, maintain and support THEIR guys on the ground out of THEIR budget. They have responsibility, authority and budget. They would also have to learn how to fight a ground battle.
I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they didn’t start producing results that were more convivial to the Navy, the Army dominated Expeditionary Command and the Militia dominated Heartland division of Canada Command.
Heartland – RCMP with Militia and support from Army, Air Force and possibly some Navy
Sovereign Canada – Air Force with support from Rangers, Army and Coast Guard/Navy out to 200 miles
Lines of Communications – Navy with support from Air Force
Expeditions – Army with support from Air Force, Navy and Militia.
Just some thoughts from an amateur.
Cheers.
PS I apologize to Edward and others for the abominable english. Momentarily exercised.
However I did have an opportunity to go to Gagetown and take Phase III training along with the real soldiers: a rare privilege for a MITCP officer. While there I learned a bunch of stuff, some inconsequential stuff like the weight of an FNC1A1 complete with sling, bayonet and 20 round magazine attached. And some stuff of real value, such as when you aren’t sure pretend you are. People want to believe that somebody knows what they are doing. (Dropped off along Shanks Road at 0 Dark 30 with my syndicate for a night navigation exercise, fumbling with bindings on banger boards while everybody else has competently slipped into theirs and are now arguing about where the heck we are, stand up, lead off and say “Right, this way, so-and-so with such-and-such, whatsisname stay with me.” Got lucky. Guessed right.)
Also discovered a rare phenomenon pertaining to the radio. It had magical properties.
The way the course was run syndicate leader got the radio. Everybody else tagged along behind. Last man invariably lagging, a long way from 5 metre spacing, no clue as to where they were, moaning and whining as he went. It seemed to be a requirement for the position. Leader spends his time yelling come on keep up.
Change legs.
Last man gets the radio. Ldr drops to 2nd, 2nd to 3rd, 3rd to Last. He starts lagging. The guy that couldn’t keep up without the radio, suddenly, magically finds that he is 40 metres ahead of the syndicate and in yelling come on keep up. Miraculous.
Later, I observed similar effects in the absence of the radio and concluded the magical result had less to do with the power of the radio and more to do with the power of responsibility.
On to the Air Force.
A lot has been said about the Air Force and its 48 fighter jocks and how they don’t seem to want to play with the Army or the Navy. Some guys that do work with the Army and the Navy seem to think they might be better off changing uniforms full time. Perhaps they might.
On the other hand perhaps the problem is that the Air Force brass has constantly seen its responsibilities taken from it. Its lunch been eaten if you like. That does not tend to make for happy individuals.
Perhaps the answer is NOT to take responsibilities away but instead to add to the responsibilities.
Consider 4 circles
The Heartland or Settled Canada (cities, villages, farms, roads, railways and such)
Sovereign Canada (trackless wastes full of vast exploitable riches etc etc reaching out to whatever we can claim under law)
Lines of Communications with the Rest of the World (the high seas)
Expeditionary Canada (Canada the good saving the world from itself and scoring points in the process)
The Heartland can be reached by truck on high speed highways and there are people scattered all over the place that are willing to help. Not much chance of being hit by a bullet so little need for armour and big guns but lots of need for bodies to help and control situations. A great place for a Militia to help out the civilian authorities like the RCMP. They need a little stiffening from full time soldiers and airmen, but the threats the face will either be large crowds poorly armed and organized or small bodies well armed and organized. Both will be faced infrequently. Part time soldiers to deal with the occasional emergencies and a small force of well-trained and available regs would probably get the job done.
Skip Sovereign Canada for a minute.
Lines of Communications – the high seas, blue water, the Navy. Keeping pirates, slavers, drug runners, and illegal arms shippers at bay. The traffic cops of the sea lanes. Secondary function making sure that Expeditionary Canada gets to where it is going and comes back safely. A job for the Navy with help from the Air Force in helicopters. No long runways at sea.
Expeditionary Canada. Boots on the ground in foreign lands. Primarily and Army force with some Air Force assistance – for planning purposes it might be better not to count on having long hard runways and a secure fuel supply. Better to assume that support is going to come from Helicopters and the Artillery.
Now back to Sovereign Canada. As in the Heartland the threat is likely to be small bodies, some well trained, some not so much. They are also scattered over an incredibly large area. Where in the Heartland the countryside is under constant observation from busybody neighbours and the local constabulary the sovereign lands are largely unobserved. The same is true of the approaches.
Sovereign Canada demands constant observation and occasional response. The response however can be anything from photographing a polluter, to rescuing a downed aircraft, to interdicting a foreign fishing/mining/smuggling operation, to occasionally dealing with armed individuals and groups that choose not to accept the governments authority. To meet all these needs requires multiple capabilities. These capabilities can be duplicated and scattered widely or else, with good transportation they can be concentrated and deployed as required.
This job, part of the job that Canada Command is being tasked with, seems to me to be ideally suited to the Air Force. Satellites, Radars, Air Defence and Search and Rescue are all primarily their job now in any case. Add in responsibility for a brigade of light troops configured for platoon/company operations in Canadian territory as well as the Rangers.
All of a sudden Air Force commanders now have to figure out how to deploy, maintain and support THEIR guys on the ground out of THEIR budget. They have responsibility, authority and budget. They would also have to learn how to fight a ground battle.
I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they didn’t start producing results that were more convivial to the Navy, the Army dominated Expeditionary Command and the Militia dominated Heartland division of Canada Command.
Heartland – RCMP with Militia and support from Army, Air Force and possibly some Navy
Sovereign Canada – Air Force with support from Rangers, Army and Coast Guard/Navy out to 200 miles
Lines of Communications – Navy with support from Air Force
Expeditions – Army with support from Air Force, Navy and Militia.
Just some thoughts from an amateur.
Cheers.
PS I apologize to Edward and others for the abominable english. Momentarily exercised.
