The Canadian Armed Forces’ disappearing act
It would seem that the senior leadership of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) continues to whistle past the graveyard as it becomes clearly evident that the personnel shortfall has begun crippling Canada's military operational readiness.
A recent CBC headline noted, "Changes to training forced by budget cuts could leave military less ready for a fight, experts warn.” The CBC story noted that drastic internal DND budget cuts have led to the cancellation of a qualifying exercise for combat troops headed to Canada's forward deployed battle group in Latvia.
The “expert” sounding the alarm bell on this development is none other than Lt.gen. (ret'd) Andrew Leslie, a former Army Commander.
Since Canadian battle groups began deploying to Latvia in 2017 as part of NATO'S Operation REASSURANCE, the final phase of their training was conducted at CFB Wainwright. These qualifying exercises were combined-arms training wherein soldiers would coordinate infantry, tanks, artillery and aircraft.
‘LEARN ON THE JOB’
Without that level of training, Leslie fears that Canadian soldiers are now "going to have to learn on the job, using other people's equipment and expertise."
The explanation given to the CBC by Chief of the Defence Staff General Wayne Eyre was that these qualifying exercises were cut to allow the soldiers deploying to spend more time with their families.
"What we're finding was the battle groups, the various units that we're deploying, were spending a lot of time on exercise here at home to get to a very high level, and then going to Latvia and doing much of the same work."
So, in other words “not to worry folks, no need to study for the exam, we'll pick it up during the test itself.”
The problem with Eyre's comments is that he knows his former Army Commander, Lt.-gen. Leslie is correct.
The cracks in the CAF'S operational readiness are not limited to just the Army. The RCAF has recently announced that they are grounding their aging fleet of jet trainers (which are actually newer than Canada's CF-18 frontline fighters) and farming out pilot training to allied nations.
The current shortfall of trained pilots has resulted in the cancellation of international deployments in support of NATO objectives.
The commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, Viceadmiral Angus Topshee issued an unprecedented video message last year wherein he admitted that due to personnel shortcomings the RCN will not be able to fulfill its operational objectives through the foreseeable future. It was a brave admission, but definitely one which resonated with Topshee's sailors.
REDUCED CEREMONIAL GUARD
As an Ottawa resident I must admit that I was surprised to learn that the Ceremonial Guard will not be performing the Changing of the Guard ceremony on the lawn in front of Parliament Hill again this summer. The band will still make a daily appearance and there is a much-reduced guard changing ceremony performed at Rideau Hall.
However, that long-standing martial spectacle has been suspended. It was halted first in 2020 due to Covid-19 but now it is due to a shortage of personnel in the two Reserve regiments that constitute the Ceremonial Guard – The Governor General's Foot Guards and the Canadian Grenadier Guards.
Not everyone realizes that the scarlet-coated guardsmen with their towering bearskin hats were actually serving members of Canada's militia. They are combat-capable soldiers who have often deployed abroad alongside our regular forces. In order to keep the tourist friendly event a fixture in Ottawa, the Changing of the Guard ceremony may need to become a privately owned re-enactor enterprise in the future.
Now, before the Colonel Blimps begin heartily thumping on their tubs at the loss of another tradition, there are many examples where this is indeed the case. At the Citadel in Halifax, the 78th Highlanders perform drill and musket demonstrations and at Fort Henry in Kingston, Ont., it is a foundation that funds the re-enactors each summer. They have no formal connection to the CAF.
Perhaps it is also time to do something similar with the RCAF'S demonstration squadron known as the Snowbirds. The aged-out Tutor planes which the Snowbirds use are overdue for retirement and it seems unlikely that any government of the day will spend the billions of dollars necessary to buy a new fleet of show planes. Particularly when skilled pilots are in such scarce supply.