Current ads
Jobs
Tenders
Notices
General

Click below

Sovereignty exercise left military panting

Training, equipment proved inadequate for Arctic weather, military report says

JOHN THOMPSON

Canadian Rangers patrol two islands near Isachsen, an abandoned weather station found on Ellef Ringnes Island, during sovereignty operations in early April that were curtailed by blizzards and -40C weather.

---

Overconfidence, inadequate training and out-dated equipment all contributed to difficulties experienced by the Canadian military during recent exercises in the High Arctic, according to an internal report.

The exercises took place in early April at Isachsen, an abandoned weather station found on Ellef Ringnes Island, 150 km above the magnetic north pole.

Touted as a major sovereignty mission, the $1 million operation included plans for an emergency response to a simulated plane crash, making use of a U.S. Air Force DC-3 transport jet that crashed in the area during the 1950s.

But whiteout conditions delayed the arrival of troops for several days. Once the nine regular force members, dozen Canadian rangers and several Twin Otter pilots and crew members were on the ground, troops only had time to perform two of the four scheduled exercises, one patrol to Amund Ringnes Island and another to Meighan Island. The much-hyped air crash simulation never was performed.

While the military has no control over weather conditions, a report written after the exercises says it could be better prepared for it.

Pilots and support staff from the 440 Squadron, which flies four Twin Otter aircraft based in Yellowknife, don't have the experience or training to be deployed in the field for any length of time, especially in the extreme conditions found in Isachsen, the report said.

"They're not used to operating in harsh conditions in the Arctic," said Col. Norman Couturier, who is commander for the Northern Area. "Typically we operate from airport to airport."

The report recommends the pilots be outfitted with their own personal tents, shelters to protect them from the elements while repairing their aircraft, as well as larger generators and forced-air heaters. New aircraft are also needed, as the aging Twin Otters were pushed to their limits during the exercise, and the military depended on charter aircraft to help bring equipment and personnel to the site.

The exercise also pushed the aging Twin Otter aircraft to their limits, Couturier said.

"The Twin Otter was an excellent aircraft when it was developed. It still is today, when you're dealing with short distances," he said. "But it's a slow aircraft. It can no longer fulfill the mandate we have."

Couturier never did have a chance to inspect the troops during the exercise, because his charter plane was turned away by the poor weather.

The military plans to purchase new light transport aircraft with an extended range over the next few years.

Communications trouble during the exercise also revealed the weakness of current technology used the by Canadian military in the High Arctic. This is partly because satellite phones become unreliable north of 70 degrees latitude, Couturier said. The military is currently looking into the feasibility of building a string of hi-frequency radio antennas across the North.

But Couturier disagrees with the report's diagnosis that the military showed signs of overconfidence, maintaining they had no choice in the face of harsh blizzards and bitterly cold weather but to scale plans back.

On a scale of 100, Environment Canada rates the extreme weather conditions found in the area at 99.

"We're always at the mercy of Mother Nature."

TOP

Advertising
Specs, rates,
& maps
Multi-paper
buying services
About the market
E-mail ad dept

More Information