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Topic: Afghanistan - 3rd Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment - Predeployment (Read 6002 times)
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Mike Blais
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A ROYAL CANADIAN "NEVER PASSES A FAULT"
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Soldier eager for Afghan mission
12 members of Lincs and Winks being dispatched to Kandahar in next few weeks
Posted By DON FRASER STANDARD STAFF
Let's do it.
Let's get the job done.
That's the sentiment of Dennis Brown of St. Catharines, a warrant officer from the Lincoln and Welland Regiment who is set to join Canada's troops in Afghanistan.
He'll most likely leave for the troubled Kandahar province on Sept. 18. There, he'll be part of a counter-improvised explosive device team.
"We 're the bomb guys that go out and defuse bombs that are found and we investigate if a bomb goes off -- CSI stuff ," said Brown, 38, who is taking a leave of absence as a special constable with Niagara Regional Police.
"I am rested and really ready to go and
finish the last month of training," he said. "And then I want to get over there and get it done with."
The 12 members of the Lincs and Winks who will leave for Afghanistan in the next four to seven weeks will join at least two other members already there serving with the 3rd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment.
Once in Afghanistan, they'll have various jobs with the Canadian Forces in Kandahar province during tours that last six to eight months.
On Saturday, the men and their families gathered at the Lake Street Armoury in St. Catharines for a family day and informal send-off, complete with a band, children's games and a barbecue.
Cpl. Drew Neufeld from west St. Catharines is one of the youngest Niagara men to go to Afghanistan.
Neufeld, 21, is now part of 3rd Battalion and has been training in Petawawa for 18 months. He
feels fully trained and confident about the upcoming tour.
"My family is going to miss me, of course," said the Beamsville District Secondary School grad, who grew up in Jordan. "They'll worry like any parent would, and my siblings and girlfriend," Neufeld said. "But they're confident in me and very proud.
"There are no qualms about what might happen."
Lincs and Winks commanding officer
Lieut. Col. Matt Richardson said a formal send-off parade for the soldiers, who will then be attached to the 3rd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment, will be held in August in Petawawa.
Most of the Niagara soldiers have spent months training at the eastern Ontario base and are now on leave before their departure.
"They're our troops, our friends and our family," Richardson said. "Saturday is a great going- away party for them."
Richardson said one Lincs and Winks member, Master Corp. Emily Ireland of Welland, is already serving in Afghanistan.
Sgt. Matt Harris, 36, of Welland, is also with the Niagara regiment. He came to the bash with his wife, Lisa and their children Colin, 3, and Maddison, 6.
Harris, who served in Bosnia in 1998, has been in Petawawa since January.
"I do feel confident," Harris said. "We've been working hard ... and we try to do everything they can think of that (Taliban fighters) will try at us.
"I'm always worried about my family," he said. "But I know my wife is strong, as she's been there before."
Lisa Harris said she's "a little nervous."
"I'll try to keep things as normal as possible at home."
As a band inside the armoury hall
completed a sound check, Dennis Brown's wife, Mishelle, straightened up and smiled when asked about her husband's deployment.
Mishelle, who was a driving force behind the St. Catharines send-off, also brought along the couple's children Mackenzie, 12, Jenna, 11, Owen, 9, and Benjamin, 6.
"I feel good and I want him to get going as well," the St. Catharines resident said. "I just want him to get there and get back safe."
Then there is emotion in her voice as she adds another thought.
"Dennis is my hero, but they're all my heroes and I support every last one of them."
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1RCR 1977-79 Depot (Italy PL), B Coy, Mortars, Pioneers, D Coy (CFB London)
3RCR 1979-82 M Coy, Pipes & Drums, Sigs, Mortars. (CFB Baden-Soellingen)
1RCR 1982-88 Mortars. Dukes, Cyprus-Welfare NCO 84-85, Injured, WO&Sgts Mess, (CFB London)
1988-92 Med-remuster to HELL/ 35 DU, CFB Baden
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ranrad
Ron [Andy] Andrews
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Have a great sendoff and may God speed all, to get it done and get home safe..ranrad
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Mike Blais
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A ROYAL CANADIAN "NEVER PASSES A FAULT"
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Welll Golllllllllllyyyyyy!
How many dead and now the neocons decide to do what should have been done about what, fifteen dead IED victims later? Nice to see they picked Russian stuff the taliban have excelled on neutralizing in another era, eh? F'n clowns.
Canada to lease Russian-built copters for use in Afghanistan, MacKay says
MURRAY BREWSTER
The Canadian Press
July 31, 2008 at 4:13 AM EDT
OTTAWA — Canada will lease up to eight Russian-built helicopters to ferry supplies around the battlefield in Afghanistan until it gets new U.S. choppers, Defence Minister Peter MacKay says.
It is a stopgap measure meant to get Canadian army supply convoys off the bomb-laced roads of Kandahar, where explosives have been taking an increasingly deadly toll.
Securing helicopter transport was a principal condition of the Manley commission report on Canada's future role in Afghanistan last winter and a key caveat of Parliament's extension of the combat mission until 2011. The Conservative government was given until February, 2009, to come up with the helicopters and a flight of unmanned surveillance planes.
A $375-million deal to acquire six CH-47D Chinooks from the U.S. Army has been worked out, but those heavy-lift aircraft will not arrive until late this year - or early next.
In the meantime, Mr. MacKay said, the Defence Department has worked out a lease involving "six to eight" Russian-made Mi-8 choppers.
The former Soviet-era helicopters "have similar capacity to a Chinook," Mr. MacKay told reporters heading yesterday into the Conservative caucus summer retreat in Lévis, Que.
"So they're heavy-lift. ... They'll be used to transport materials along the same routes, performing much the same purpose [as] the Chinooks would."
The Mi-8s are, in fact, considered a medium-lift helicopter and date back in their original design to the 1960s. They were a familiar sight in the skies of Afghanistan during the Soviet occupation.
Mr. MacKay would not say what former Soviet Bloc country - or private company - would provide the aircraft, nor was the cost of the lease made public.
An official in the minister's office said a detailed formal announcement will be made next week.
The NATO mission in Afghanistan has suffered from a shortage of troop- and supply-helicopter support.
The military alliance was put in the embarrassing position late last year of approving the lease of private helicopters and fixed-wing planes for supply missions at remote desert and mountain-top bases.
Member countries were unwilling to risk their own aircraft and crews on perilous missions.
The Canadian army is one of the only major troop-contributing countries in Afghanistan without its own dedicated helicopter support and the Conservatives have struggled for over two years to acquire U.S.-made CH-47s.
If the leased Mi-8 helicopters come from another NATO country, such as Hungary or Slovakia, they would be able to carry both troops and equipment.
But Mr. MacKay's careful choice of words and reference to "materials" suggests the rentals will likely belong to a private company, a defence analyst said.
"They're not certified to transport our personnel, except of course in an emergency, so they would be leased to transport equipment only," said Alain Pellerin, executive director of the Conference of Defence Associations.
Last winter, Poland offered Canada access to two of its Mi-17 battlefield transport helicopters, part of its increased commitment to the Afghan mission.
They were expected to arrive this summer, but military officials have privately expressed concern about availability.
Polish special forces soldiers operating in Kandahar would have first call on the choppers, not Canadians.
Another key condition for remaining in Afghanistan, the purchase of unmanned surveillance drones, is also well in hand, Mr. MacKay said.
A deal, possibly worth $100-million, to lease a flight of unmanned aerial vehicles - or UAVs - from MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. and Israeli Air Industries Ltd. was expected to be approved this week by the federal cabinet
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1RCR 1977-79 Depot (Italy PL), B Coy, Mortars, Pioneers, D Coy (CFB London)
3RCR 1979-82 M Coy, Pipes & Drums, Sigs, Mortars. (CFB Baden-Soellingen)
1RCR 1982-88 Mortars. Dukes, Cyprus-Welfare NCO 84-85, Injured, WO&Sgts Mess, (CFB London)
1988-92 Med-remuster to HELL/ 35 DU, CFB Baden
1992 Medical release. God Bless you all!
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ranrad
Ron [Andy] Andrews
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Well, i hope their [Russian} choppers had a better battle record than the average Russian soldier...not only werer thousands killed, but the whole countries economy destroyed..the Russian economy...we dont need that, and it could dang well happen..ranrad
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RCAF,CAF, converted RCR?,1RCR 74-77 CD: SSM (Nato);CPSM,;UN-Cyp.; UN- Golan
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Mike Blais
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'I want to kill Canadians,' says Afghan whose children died in shooting
Graham Thomson
Canwest News Service
Friday, August 01, 2008
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - The father of two children accidentally killed by Canadian soldiers says he wants revenge.
"If I get a chance, I will kill Canadians," Rozi Muhammed said yesterday.
It's not clear if Mr. Muhammed is serious or merely venting his anger. His threat is made with no emotion, but his voice betrays a deep exhaustion and profound shock.
He is haggard, his eyes are glazed. He has had almost no sleep since the nightmare incident Sunday when his children's bodies exploded from the impact of a single shot from a Canadian 25mm cannon.
"I was knocked unconscious," said Mr. Muhammed, speaking through an interpreter with Global National in Kandahar City.
"When I woke up, the Canadians came and gave us some treatment. After that, I collected some of the pieces of the children. My wife was crying; she was in a very bad way."
The incident has a terrible irony for Mr. Muhammed. He and his wife were taking their two children away from their home in Panjwaii district in the hope of escaping the escalating violence in the rural areas.
It was dusk, and they were on their way by taxi to a new life in Kandahar City, 40 kilometres away, when they encountered a Canadian military convoy heading toward them. For reasons that might never be understood, the taxi driver failed to obey well-publicized signals from soldiers to pull over and stay clear of the convoy.
Soldiers say the driver sped toward them without stopping. Mr. Muhammed said the driver at first pulled over, but inexplicably drove back onto the highway after two armoured vehicles had passed, even though more were on the way.
Fearing a suicide attack, a gunner opened fire with the powerful cannon. The 25mm bullet, which can slice through steel, ripped through the car and killed Mr. Muhammed's daughter, Mulkia, 5, and son, Thorjan, 2. Shrapnel wounded Mr. Muhammed, who was taken to hospital.
When asked what he wants to happen now, he twice said he wants to "kill Canadians."
But after a few moments, he said: "I am a poor man. They should help me."
Canadian officials say they have talked to Mr. Muhammed and offered their condolences. They have also started the process of deciding whether to pay compensation, which, in past accidental killings has ranged from $2,000 to $9,000.
Afghan officials are also scrambling to defuse what could become a volatile flashpoint in public anger against the coalition forces. President Hamid Karzai phoned Mr. Muhammed's uncle, and the governor of Kandahar province has invited Mr. Muhammed to a meeting this weekend.
The grieving father's threat to kill Canadians could very well be idle, but in a culture that places great importance on pride and vengeance, it is not a threat to be taken lightly.
Village elders in the Panjwaii district say the Taliban routinely use the accidental killing of civilians to whip up anger at the coalition forces and recruit new fighters.
"The Taliban is saying, 'Don't go to the government for compensation -- come and join us,'" said a local elder, Haji Fazal Muhammed. "They say, 'If you want to take revenge, this is the opportunity.' "
He said people in Panjwaii district are "confused and upset" by Sunday's shooting, because the NATO-led force has the most up-to-date weapons, which can see at night and over long distances. They don't understand how soldiers could accidentally shoot children.
He said anger at coalition troops, especially Canadians, is growing in the district not just because of the shooting but because reconstruction work is moving too slowly. He said several members of the weekly district shura -- a meeting of Afghan leaders and Canadians -- boycotted yesterday's gathering as a protest.
A Canadian official said work on some projects has slowed down over the summer as a result of increased violence during the fighting "season" but will pick up in the fall.
© The Ottawa Citizen 2008
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1RCR 1977-79 Depot (Italy PL), B Coy, Mortars, Pioneers, D Coy (CFB London)
3RCR 1979-82 M Coy, Pipes & Drums, Sigs, Mortars. (CFB Baden-Soellingen)
1RCR 1982-88 Mortars. Dukes, Cyprus-Welfare NCO 84-85, Injured, WO&Sgts Mess, (CFB London)
1988-92 Med-remuster to HELL/ 35 DU, CFB Baden
1992 Medical release. God Bless you all!
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ranrad
Ron [Andy] Andrews
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Well, one can understand his anger, upset..it is likely the most traunatic event in any parents life..i wonder ,that , if in their haste to escape the district , they were not thinking straight and in fact put themselves in a worse positon which enede in this tragedy..i hope they can find solace and try to get back a normal life..i know that is a lot to ask , but i willask my God , their God to help them deal with this terrible loss..they may in fact be wondering if their own haste helped this all come about..i can only say to that, you wer e trying to do the best for your family..i hope others will take more time and be more careful when they are doing similar moves..ranrad
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RCAF,CAF, converted RCR?,1RCR 74-77 CD: SSM (Nato);CPSM,;UN-Cyp.; UN- Golan
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Six Canadians injured in Taliban ambush
Canwest News Service Published: Thursday, August 07, 2008
ZHARI, Afghanistan -- An improvised explosive device strike about 15 kilometres outside of Canada's Zhari base in Afghanistan injured six Canadian soldiers, the Canadian Forces said Thursday.
At about 8:30 a.m. local time, an IED hit a Canadian vehicle. The military said as the six soldiers were getting clear of the vehicle the Taliban ambushed them.
The six unnamed soldiers were flown to a hospital, treated and then returned to their unit.
No details of the injuries have been released.
Canadian troops engaged the Taliban after the ambush.
About 2,500 Canadians are serving in Afghanistan.
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1RCR 1977-79 Depot (Italy PL), B Coy, Mortars, Pioneers, D Coy (CFB London)
3RCR 1979-82 M Coy, Pipes & Drums, Sigs, Mortars. (CFB Baden-Soellingen)
1RCR 1982-88 Mortars. Dukes, Cyprus-Welfare NCO 84-85, Injured, WO&Sgts Mess, (CFB London)
1988-92 Med-remuster to HELL/ 35 DU, CFB Baden
1992 Medical release. God Bless you all!
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Mike Blais
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Offensive against Taliban under way
GLORIA GALLOWAY
August 8, 2008 at 2:55 AM EDT
KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN — NATO and Afghan forces have launched a major offensive against the Taliban in the northern part of Kandahar where the insurgents have established a logistical base for their attacks against coalition troops.
Canadian soldiers, their NATO allies based in Kandahar and Afghan National Security Forces have moved into the Maywand and Band-E-Timor districts northwest of Kandahar city to drive the Taliban from the wide swath of territory they now control.
The operation, dubbed Roob Unyip Janubi - Southern Beast in the native Pashto - also includes British forces from the neighbouring Helmand province.
"Coalition Forces are working in concert with our Afghan partners to disrupt insurgent activities in the Maywand area so reconstruction, development and good governance can take place, and the everyday lives of the local population can be improved," said Captain Sonia Dumouchel-Connock, a public affairs officer for Joint Task Force Afghanistan in a press release issued just before midnight yesterday, Afghanistan time.
The NATO forces in Kandahar had not planned to make news of the assault public until next week but foreign media broke an embargo on protected information, forcing the task force to acknowledge the action was taking place.
It comes after an acknowledgment by Canada's Chief of the Defence Staff, General Walter Natynczyk, that the situation in Afghanistan is getting worse.
Meanwhile, six Canadian soldiers were injured in a gun battle with the Taliban yesterday when they were ambushed in Zhari south of Maywand, a district they have had to retake time and again.
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1RCR 1977-79 Depot (Italy PL), B Coy, Mortars, Pioneers, D Coy (CFB London)
3RCR 1979-82 M Coy, Pipes & Drums, Sigs, Mortars. (CFB Baden-Soellingen)
1RCR 1982-88 Mortars. Dukes, Cyprus-Welfare NCO 84-85, Injured, WO&Sgts Mess, (CFB London)
1988-92 Med-remuster to HELL/ 35 DU, CFB Baden
1992 Medical release. God Bless you all!
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Canadian troops help net drugs, weapons TheStar.com - World - Canadian troops help net drugs, weapons
August 08, 2008
THE CANADIAN PRESS
Canadian military officials say troops have seized a large quantity of weapons, bomb-making materials and drugs during an ongoing operation in Maywand District, west of Kandahar City.
The joint operation, which involved Afghan forces as well as U.S. and British troops, is aimed at disrupting insurgent activity.
Capt. Chris Quinlan says it was also an opportunity to bridge ties with local elders in an underserviced area of the province.
Maj. Fraser Auld adds the insurgents were taken by surprise by the sweep.
Officials say no insurgents were captured during the operation.
Most of Canada's 2,500 troops are based in Kandahar city as well as the volatile Zhari and Panjwaii districts of Kandahar province.
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1RCR 1977-79 Depot (Italy PL), B Coy, Mortars, Pioneers, D Coy (CFB London)
3RCR 1979-82 M Coy, Pipes & Drums, Sigs, Mortars. (CFB Baden-Soellingen)
1RCR 1982-88 Mortars. Dukes, Cyprus-Welfare NCO 84-85, Injured, WO&Sgts Mess, (CFB London)
1988-92 Med-remuster to HELL/ 35 DU, CFB Baden
1992 Medical release. God Bless you all!
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ranrad
Ron [Andy] Andrews
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Dad blasted , we need moreof this, keep the buggers on the run .. til they run out odf wind and places to go...for that we needed a whole pile more trained combat bots on the ground..seems to me that NATO is NOT serious about winning this war, not serious at all.. makes for bigger profits for the arms and weapons dealers... but at what cost?? Human lives.. thats what cost.. this is not some kind of game of kids playing cowboys and indians, its bloody war.. lets start getting serious about it , or damn well pull our troops out of there... thats enough dammit, we cannot keep having bonehead bureaucrats running the military campaign... make up you ruddy minds , give the proper orders , men and equipement and let the guys and gals get the job done..enough already.. lets get on with it NATO...now....ranrad
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RCAF,CAF, converted RCR?,1RCR 74-77 CD: SSM (Nato);CPSM,;UN-Cyp.; UN- Golan
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Canadian soldier killed during firefight in volatile Afghan district
By The Canadian Press
ZHARI DISTRICT, Afghanistan - An investigation is underway into the death of a Canadian soldier who was killed early Saturday during a firefight in the volatile Zhari district west of Kandahar city.
The military said Master Cpl. Josh Roberts of Second Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry based out of Shilo, Man., died of a gunshot wound.
It's not clear yet where the shots were coming from.
It's believed a private security company passing by in a convoy may have accidentally opened fire on Canadian troops while they were engaging a group of about 15 insurgents along a rugged tract of farmland in the area known to be a Taliban hotbed.
A crew commander with 9th platoon, Charlie Company, Roberts was part of an operation involving the Afghan National Army, Afghan National Police and their Canadian Forces mentors at the time.
"As a soldier he was a bang-on guy," Capt. Scott MacGregor, acting C Company commander, told The Canadian Press later in the day.
"No matter where he worked or who he worked with, he just fit in well with everybody."
Calling it "one of those tragic stories," MacGregor said the Saskatchewan native had recently switched to the regular force from the reserves and was expecting a child within the next month.
Roberts is the 89th Canadian soldier to die in Afghanistan since 2002. A Canadian diplomat was also killed in the country.
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1RCR 1977-79 Depot (Italy PL), B Coy, Mortars, Pioneers, D Coy (CFB London)
3RCR 1979-82 M Coy, Pipes & Drums, Sigs, Mortars. (CFB Baden-Soellingen)
1RCR 1982-88 Mortars. Dukes, Cyprus-Welfare NCO 84-85, Injured, WO&Sgts Mess, (CFB London)
1988-92 Med-remuster to HELL/ 35 DU, CFB Baden
1992 Medical release. God Bless you all!
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Canadian soldier killed in Afghan attack
Graham Thomson
Canwest News Service
Saturday, August 09, 2008
Master Corporal Joshua Brian Roberts
CREDIT:
Master Corporal Joshua Brian Roberts
KANDAHAR CITY, Afghanistan -- A Canadian soldier has been killed in a confusing firefight involving a private security company in the violence-plagued Zhari district, west of Kandahar City.
Master Cpl. Josh Roberts of the 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry based in Shilo, Manitoba, died in the attack.
Military officials are saying little about how Roberts died except he was killed on Saturday morning in a skirmish involving coalition forces, insurgents and a private firm that provides armed escorts for civilian convoys.
The commander of Task Force Kandahar refused to comment on speculation that the private firm might have accidentally fired on the Canadians.
"An investigation is being conducted to determine the details surrounding this incident and further information will be made public when it is available," said Brig.-Gen. Denis Thompson.
Thompson said Roberts, promoted to master corporal just two weeks ago, was described by his friends as a "fun-loving and genuine individual who was totally dedicated to the army and held his section together. He looked out for his guys in ways they probably didn't realize."
Roberts, who leaves behind a fiancee, is the 15th Canadian soldier to die in the Afghanistan mission this year and the 89th since the mission began in 2002.
Thompson wouldn't name the security company involved in the firefight. A big player in the private escort business here is Compass Security which operates in Iraq and Afghanistan, with offices in New York as well as the Middle East.
The Canadian military even hires private security to help guard some of its bases, said Thompson.
"Without private security firms it would be impossible to achieve what we're achieving here. There are many aspects of the mission here in Afghanistan, many security aspects that are performed by private security firms that, which if they were turned over to the military, would make our task impossible. We just don't have the numbers to do everything."
Edmonton Journal
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1RCR 1977-79 Depot (Italy PL), B Coy, Mortars, Pioneers, D Coy (CFB London)
3RCR 1979-82 M Coy, Pipes & Drums, Sigs, Mortars. (CFB Baden-Soellingen)
1RCR 1982-88 Mortars. Dukes, Cyprus-Welfare NCO 84-85, Injured, WO&Sgts Mess, (CFB London)
1988-92 Med-remuster to HELL/ 35 DU, CFB Baden
1992 Medical release. God Bless you all!
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Ron [Andy] Andrews
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Another Cdn HERO lost.. may you reast in peace MCpl, your job very well done, and mya his family and friends find solace in the duty and dedication of this man...ranrad
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RCAF,CAF, converted RCR?,1RCR 74-77 CD: SSM (Nato);CPSM,;UN-Cyp.; UN- Golan
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Deadly serious business
Playing soldier for a day at army base a stark reminder country is at war
Gord Henderson
Windsor Star
Saturday, August 09, 2008
CAMP PETAWAWA - Watching young men and women preparing to risk their lives in a battle zone shouldn't be half this much fun.
That guilty thought crossed my mind as I whooped like an adrenalin-crazed 10-year-old after leaping into thin air from a paratroop training tower and then rocketing, Superman style, across a football-sized field while dangling from a cable line.
For several dozen business and professional people (and a handful of media) flown in from cities across Ontario, including Windsor, the whirlwind "Executrek" to the sprawling army base in the rolling, pine-clad hills of the upper Ottawa Valley was a lark, a Walter Mitty adventure and a welcome escape from the confines of the office.
But the visit, laid on by the Canadian Forces Liaison Council, whose mission is to cement closer ties and mutual support between the business community and Canada's increasingly vital reserve forces, was also a stark reminder that this country is at war and young men and women are fighting and dying on our behalf.
LARGE NUMBER OF RESERVISTS
With the regular force stretched to the limit, large numbers of reservists from across Canada, including Windsor, have served in Afghanistan. One in four serving there now is a reservist. And 539 more, including about a dozen from the Windsor area, are preparing to depart next month.
One thing is certain. This is no longer your dad's weekend militia, an excuse to hoist a few cold ones with the boys, swap tales and traipse off to summer camp. With the Taliban waiting in the hills around Kandahar, this is deadly serious business. As the sign at the base entrance puts it: "Welcome to CFB Petawawa. The Training Grounds of The Warriors."
Not that the Afghanistan-hardened veterans who conduct the training at Petawawa lack a lighter side. I'm not sure who had more fun Thursday, the bankers, lawyers and CEOs playing soldier for a day, including a large contingent of feisty, outspoken try-anything female executives from Waterloo, or the smiling, kidding, infinitely patient warriors who were our hosts.
"The OC (officer in command) will give you a full-blown brief and make you feel all warm and fuzzy," promised Sgt. Vance, a master sniper with the Royal Canadian Regiment who fought in several major engagements with the Taliban, while welcoming a busload of bleary-eyed civilians arriving from tiny Pembroke Airport.
"Warm and fuzzy" is not what comes to mind when they issue helmets and protective eye gear and require visitors to sign waivers absolving the Canadian Forces of responsibility for heart attacks, accidents and other nasty events that might occur on a training ground crawling with heavy equipment and explosives.
Were we visiting the army? Or did we sign up for an Outward Bound course? Driven out to the rappelling tower in LAV 3 armoured vehicles, we gazed up at a wood and aluminum structure that would rival downtown Windsor's Canderel Tower for height.
God almighty. Surely they don't expect us to descend from that on ropes? Do they? Several of us whimpered confessions of fear when it comes to cleaning eavestroughs. Not to worry, they told us. You'll only be going off from the 40-foot level. A measly four-storey building. Mere child's play. Minutes later we were trussed up in ropes that would do a bondage queen proud and were grimly mounting a staircase to our rendezvous with gravity.
Funny how different it looks from up there. Like about 10 times higher. Leaning backward over the precipice, legs spread, I could hear my heart pounding out a jackhammer symphony. One step down. Two steps. Oops. And there I was, Mr. Klutz, hanging sideways like a sack of potatoes in mid-air. I got down to ground level somehow, humiliated but with only a banged-up elbow as evidence of my misstep. "Hey. That's nothing. We've seen a lot worse. We've had first-timers wind up upside down," insisted a sympathetic soldier.
The levity ended at a remote corner of the base where hand-picked young reservists taking a gruelling junior leadership course, some of whom will inevitably end up in Afghanistan, were manning camouflaged foxholes and awaiting an "enemy" attack.
Star photographer Tyler Brownbridge and I joined two young Windsor men, Justin Paquette, 23, a fulltime reservist, and Dan Hutnik, 25, a bartender at Cramdon's.
I discovered the joy of cold shepherd's pie in a bag, or pate chinois if you prefer, and ate a handful of dry ground coffee (the ultimate wake-up call) while Paquette and Hutnik clutched their C-7 rifles, peered ahead through the tall grass and described the misery of sleep deprivation. They had just gone two full days and nights without sleep while fending off enemy attacks and hordes of mosquitoes in what has been described as the worst bug season in a quarter century.
I asked Paquette why he's applied to serve in Afghanistan. "I feel like it's something I should do. I just think it would be a good experience," he explained without going into details. Hutnik said there's no peer pressure on them to make that fateful choice. "Quite a few reservists choose not to."
For many guests, one of the highlights of the Thursday Executrek was meeting Sonja Bata, the Swiss-born philanthropist and shoe company heir who serves as the Ontario chairperson of the Canadian Forces Liaison Council.
DYNAMO
Still striking in her early eighties, Bata is a dynamo who climbs hills to visit the troops and rides in armoured vehicles over spine-rocking terrain. She's a priceless asset for the reserves, a magnetic blue-chip salesperson who talks convincingly to CEOs about the discipline, leadership, teamwork and commitment that reservists can bring to a company.
Bata, in an interview, said we as Canadians always talk about the rights we have as citizens. "Let's talk about our obligations to our country as well," said Bata. Reservists, she said, "dedicate their life to this job."
Col. Dean Milner, commander of 2 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group, the larger-than-life character who runs Petawawa and is responsible for Canadian army training, carries the enormous responsibility of ensuring that the next contingent bound for Afghanistan, more than 1,500 men and women, is fully trained and ready for anything the Taliban throws at them.
"It makes it easier for us," conceded Milner of the impact the shooting war in Afghanistan has had on the combat training environment here in Canada. "You have absolutely their undivided attention," he told me. Every soldier is acutely aware 88 of their comrades have died in that godforsaken land and everything they learn here, from battle tactics to first aid training that falls just short of what a paramedic learns, could help keep them alive.
"It's critical to paint that picture for them," said Milner of evolving Taliban tactics involving suicide bombers and IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices).
"Their physical fitness has to be absolutely paramount." He said Canadian soldiers face difficult terrain, suffocating heat and might have to keep going for 48 hours straight at times.
"You've got to peak in theatre, not before you get there," said Milner of the danger of training soldiers to the point of exhaustion before their departure. He has a team in Afghanistan studying "what was good and what was bad" in encounters with the enemy, and relaying the latest information back to Canada immediately.
"If it's life or death, I need to incorporate it into the training now," he said, explaining that explosives used by the Taliban are getting bigger and their tactics more sophisticated. "Our enemy is good. They've been learning from the terrorists in Iraq."
This was an eye-opener for many of the civilians who travelled to Petawawa. They came away understanding that the reserves are important and that underlining the height-defying fun and games is a grim message.
Our soldiers are putting themselves in harm's way, with no assurances they'll come in one piece, and they need and deserve public and corporate support.
ghenderson@thestar.canwest.com
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1RCR 1977-79 Depot (Italy PL), B Coy, Mortars, Pioneers, D Coy (CFB London)
3RCR 1979-82 M Coy, Pipes & Drums, Sigs, Mortars. (CFB Baden-Soellingen)
1RCR 1982-88 Mortars. Dukes, Cyprus-Welfare NCO 84-85, Injured, WO&Sgts Mess, (CFB London)
1988-92 Med-remuster to HELL/ 35 DU, CFB Baden
1992 Medical release. God Bless you all!
Pro Patria
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Mike Blais
SSM (NATO Bar), CPSM, UN-Cyp, CD
Ultimate 2000+ Member
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