Preserving capacity, General Tom Lawson, Chief of the Defence Staff, Keys to Canadian SAR
Issue link: http://vanguardcanada.uberflip.com/i/111458
PSYOPS P Captain Philippe Chagnon, a member of the psychological operations (PSYOPS) team in Haiti (left) and Major Claude Villeneuve, chief of the Civilian Military Cooperation, during a patrol in Deh-e Bagh, Kandahar province. Photos: DND toon during Operation Hestia following the 2010 Haiti Earthquake. Quebec Area was tasked with providing IA personnel but an ad hoc platoon was formed with only five PSYOPS operators; the rest were CIMIC, a decision most likely motivated by the wrong perception that PSYOPS was less useful than CIMIC in a support/ disaster relief operation. By failing to understand the scope of IA capabilities, CF leaders deprived a PSYOPS platoon that was preparing for its upcoming deployment in Afghanistan from a unique opportunity to hone its soldiers' skills in a non-hostile yet "live" environment. So how can the Canadian Forces improve upon the commendable creation of IATF? The first and most evident suggestion is a return to a model tried in Quebec – all Land force areas were given space to experiment with structure – namely permanent, fully staffed IA units with one PSYOPS and one CIMIC platoon per area on class A (part-time) reserve duty, save for essential positions that should be either staffed by regular force personnel or class B (full-time) reserve duty. Another is to deploy IA assets within all relevant current CF operations, employing IA assets on peace support (Africa and Middle East operations, for example), disaster relief (DART, for instance) and even special forces operations. The creation of a permanent target audience analysis cell, centralized within IATF and developing analysis work sheets for all potential operation areas, would also help improve performance. Developing IA expertise has over the past decade or so made the Canadian Forces a leader in the field. However, it came at the price of several combat casualties within PSYOPS/CIMIC units – the CF must not lose that momentum. OUR FOUNDATION IS OUR TECHNOLOGIES OUR MISSION IS EXPANDING YOUR CAPABILITIES To develop innovative solutions that provide the comfort, protection and performance you need, we work backwards. First, we consider the requirements of the end user. Then we assess every element of design and apply the latest technology to develop comfortable, low-burden equipment so wearers can focus on the task at hand. Europe: +44 (0) 1695 727171 scott.sales.uk@tycoint.com North America: +1 800.247.7257 sh-sale@tycoint.com © 2011 Scott Safety ®, ScottSafety.com®. All Rights Reserved. © Crown Copyright/MOD. Reproduced with the permission of the Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office www.vanguardcanada.com FEBRUARY/MARCH 2013 17