The head of the Senate's defence committee is calling on the government and the military to immediately send Griffon helicopters to Afghanistan as part of an effort to cut down on casualties.
Liberal Senator Colin Kenny says the use of the choppers as resupply transports would reduce the time troops spend operating ground supply convoys that are highly vulnerable to insurgent attacks and improvised explosive devices, or IEDs. IEDs are seen as the main threat to soldiers on the ground at this point, he said.
Troops can be particularly vulnerable to such attacks as they travel in ground convoys to resupply forward operating bases. Military officers see more use of helicopters to move supplies and personnel as one of the solutions in reducing that exposure to IEDs.
Canada is currently in negotiations to buy medium-lift Chinook choppers from the U.S., but those aircraft might not be available until 2011.
But Mr. Kenny says Canada has an existing fleet of smaller Griffon choppers that could be used in Afghanistan. "Obviously the Griffons won't be able to carry as much as a Chinook, but they can still play a role in moving some equipment and reducing some of the exposure of supply columns to IEDs," he said. "Any amount counts."
"Why isn't that being done?" Mr. Kenny asked. "Why do we have 76 Griffons still sitting here in Canada?"
Defence Department spokeswoman Sarah Kavanagh said the current Afghanistan mission requires a medium-lift helicopter able to carry sufficient numbers of personnel, up to 30 at a time, or an appropriate amount of cargo and equipment.
"The role of the Griffon is not intended to fill the role of a medium-lift helicopter, and at this time there is no intent to deploy the Griffon to Afghanistan," said Miss Kavanagh. But, she added, "While the performance characteristics of the Griffon are not ideally suited to the environment in Afghanistan, the Canadian Forces continues to monitor the evolution of operations in that theatre to determine if there may be an appropriate role for the Griffon in the future."
U.S. and Dutch Chinooks are currently available in southern Afghanistan, but they are much sought after by various forces in the region. The Canadian Forces used to operate Chinooks, but the Conservative government sold them off in the early 1990s as a cost-cutting measure. Mr. Kenny said that while the Griffon carries less than the Chinook, any difference could be made up by operating more of the smaller helicopters. He said 18 of the Griffons should be sent over to Kandahar as soon as possible.
"I'm of the view that anything that can be done to reduce casualties and provide the necessary equipment should be tried," said Mr. Kenny, whose committee has been supportive of additional equipment and personnel for the military.
According to figures provided by the Canadian Forces, the Griffon can carry its crew as well as 10 passengers. It has been used in domestic missions as well as overseas on operations such as in Haiti. It has armour lining the floor and the crew seats, according to the military, and the chopper can reach speeds of up to 260 km/h.
Canada is spending $4.7 billion on 16 Chinook helicopters, but negotiations with aerospace firm Boeing are still ongoing. The Canadian Forces expects the first Chinooks to arrive in 2011, although the Defence Department is trying to arrange for a faster delivery by acquiring choppers earmarked for the U.S. military.
