Preserving capacity, General Tom Lawson, Chief of the Defence Staff, Keys to Canadian SAR
Issue link: http://vanguardcanada.uberflip.com/i/439940
T Training www.vanguardcanada.com DECEMBER 2014/JANUARY 2015 29 HMCS Whitehorse, a Kingston-class coastal defence vessel, and the bridge of HMCS Wolf and HMCS Moose, Orca-class patrol ships. disposal) clearance divers means they are less likely to "strike off in different directions, developing new capabilities and advocating for technologies in purely an army or navy stream. It's about being able to come to the fi ght with common procedures and tactics, knowing what kind of communications and bandwidth others have to share information. It brings us together with a shared under- standing, which I always consider to be the most important element." One of the most recent illustrations of a powerful land-sea effect has been the interim introduction of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) aboard Halifax-class frigates. New- ton says that as with helicopter aircrews that, half a century ago, became part of a ship's company, members of the army's air de- fence regiment have adapted to life at sea and are estab- lishing themselves as a vital part of the crew. The navy is still determining how to proceed with its next generation of UAVs and their operators but he believes "there will always be a re- lationship with the army." Q If one of the selling features of new ships is o en smaller crews, and so less resources to operate, how are you approaching that quantity versus quality equation? It's a longstanding debate. we have watched partners and allies go through this debate. I think the littoral combat ship provides one of many case studies on this. As we move through design phases of the platforms, clearly the conversation will be about not only quan- tity but also what construct, because the two go together. Back to my comment that the occupational structures we have today won't be the occupational structures that move aboard these new ships: as we adjust those structures, that in turn will open up fl exibility. You might not be solely one occupation, but several, and therefore I don't need to have as many of that oc- cupation. How that plays into the crew design is something we are looking at. All of that then drives a training requirement which won't get any simpler, especially if you start to amalgamate trades, to provide them that breadth of training they are going to need to perform whatever the functions are that are resident in that occupation. Q Does the ship still need to be your primary training platform or are you able to do more through simulation and a networked structure with your schoolhouse centres? And are you also re- thinking how you do training onboard a ship? It is all of that. when we talk about training we have to be careful because we are talking individual training, small team training, and all-of-ship training. And each is diff erent to varying degrees. But we are always looking to enhance onboard training. Indeed, as we look at future systems like we have installed on the frigates, once we understand the operational eff ect it can deliver, then we need to understand the training package that comes with it to enable onboard training. Take the Harpoon weapons system as an example: there is a very robust training package onboard that comes with that. The fi nal element is linking this with the Reserves. How do I get 24 Naval Reserve Divisions linked to the naval offi cer training cen- tre so I can train all of my offi cers across the country in a virtual, networked environment? How can I in the future have ships on the east and west coasts connected through a network so that I can conduct warfare training exercises? And how do I do that with my partners across border? Q Given that much of your work is done in coalition task forces, is the next step coalition-wide training as you deploy into a theatre? Nations have been looking at this for a very long time. It briefs well but there are a range of complexities, not the least of which is access and security. But at an unclassifi ed level, we need to keep moving that way. And what I hear when I talk to colleagues is a shared appetite for this, for obvious economic reasons among others.