Preserving capacity, General Tom Lawson, Chief of the Defence Staff, Keys to Canadian SAR
Issue link: http://vanguardcanada.uberflip.com/i/368881
PUBliSHER And ExECUTivE EdiToR John Jones publisher@netgov.ca EdiToR Chris Thatcher editorvanguard@netgov.ca CONtriBUtOrS david Pletz ning lew Chris McKenna derrick Rowe Elizabeth Smith Sean Riley ian Coutts Stephen Saideman Greg Fyff e neil Pegg Peter Jones EDitOriAL ADViSOrY BOArD lGen (Ret'd) Bill leach lGen (Ret'd) George Macdonald vAdm (Ret'd) Greg Maddison lGen (Ret'd) Michel Maisonneuve Ambassador Graham Green Professor Philippe lagassé SALES viCE PRESidEnT PUBliC SECToR SAlES Terri Pavelic (905) 727-4091 ext. 225 terrip@netgov.ca nATionAl ACCoUnT MAnAGER Marcello Sukhdeo (905) 727-4091 ext. 224 marcellos@netgov.ca MARKETinG diRECToR Mary Malofy Art & PrODUCtiON ART diRECToR Elena Pankova SUBSCriPtiONS AND ADDrESS CHANGES CiRCUlATion diRECToR Aaryn Zhou circulation@netgov.ca Publisher's Mail Agreement: 40052410 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to circulation dept. 24-4 vata Court, Aurora, on l4G 4B6 vanguard magazine is published 6 times per year by Promotive Communications inc. All opinions expressed herein are those of the contributors and do not necessarily refl ect the views of the publisher or any person or organization associated with the magazine. letters, submissions, comments and suggested topics are welcome, and should be sent to assoceditor@netgov.ca REPRinT inFoRMATion: Reproduction or photocopying is prohibited without the publisher's prior written consent. High quality reprints of articles and additional copies of the magazine are available through circulation@netgov.ca PRivACy PoliCy: We do not sell our mailing list or share any confi dential information on our subscribers. vAnGUARd oFFiCE 24-4 vata Court, Aurora, on l4G 4B6 Phone: (905) 727-4091 Fax: (905) 727-4428 FrOM AUGUSt 5-8, iN A EXErCiSE KNOWN as Dacian Tunet, or Dacian Thunder, Canadian CF-18 Hornets and Romanian MiG21 Lancers worked with NATO AWACs and Romanian Joint Terminal Attack Controllers on a range of operational scenarios. The exercise was one of several to culminate what has been an educational expe- rience for the Royal Canadian Air Force as it extends its relationships further into Eastern Europe with new NATO allies. The four-month exercise with the Romanian Air Force in Campia Turzii was part of the RCAF's contribution to Operation Reassurance, a Canadian Armed Forces-wide effort to support NATO reassurance measures in Eastern Europe. The air force will continue its mission in Lithuania beginning in September when it joins a multinational air policing campaign over the Baltic. The mission was led by an air task force, part of a new construct within 2 Wing Bagotville known as the Air Expeditionary Wing. It was built from the lessons of Afghanistan, Libya and Haiti, among other missions. While portions of its capability were utilized in response to typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, Op Reassurance marks the fi rst time the full complement of its current resources have been deployed. The growth of the AEW, with its command and control, logistics support and enablers, has delivered a fl exible expeditionary capability that can be scaled to meet the demands of any mission in any environment. Though it's not quite at full op- erational capability, LCol David Pletz, the commander of Air Task Force Romania, explains in this issue how the current operation has proven the AEW concept. (Van- guard will sit down with LGen Yvan Blondin, commander of the RCAF, to talk about its domestic application, especially in the Arctic, in a future issue.) Expeditionary capability is but one of several notable changes taking place within the RCAF. Just over a year ago, two new directorates were stood up to better coor- dinate efforts around air domain development and simulation and training. Colonel Ning Lew, the RCAF's fi rst DADD, describes the former directorate's philosophy and the work that has gone into producing C4ISR and cyber strategies that are part of a broader effort to understand air force information challenges. And, of course, there is the arrival of the 15th and fi nal CH-147F Chinook. Although the heavy-lift helicopter program is one that some grumble about when citing a rash of sole source procurements at the height of the Afghanistan mis- sion, it has met its delivery timelines and is now producing a capability that has changed the concept of tactical aviation in the RCAF. LCol Chris McKenna, the new commander of 450 Tactical Helicopter Squadron, explains the aircraft's capability and how its aircrews and maintainers are developing a new partnership with industry to deliver in-service support and training. That latter point is important. The government's Defence Procurement Strat- egy, announced in February, has begun to change aspects of the procurement landscape, encouraging discussions about new approaches and partnerships. In an interview in advance of his presentation to DEFSEC Atlantic in Septem- ber, Derrick Rowe of Bluedrop Performance Learning describes the DPS's po- tential for small and medium sized enterprises, the core of the Canadian defence sector. And Sean Riley of Raytheon argues for a new way of doing business and outlines four pillars that have guided Raytheon's change agenda. They might not be T.E. Lawrence's pillars of wisdom, but they are worth a read. Chris thatcher, Editor E EDitOr'S noTE 4 AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2014 www.vanguardcanada.com new concepts take fl ight