*Moderator’s Note: This article originally appeared in the Halifax Chronicle Herald on 07 January 2012. It is reprinted here with the permission of the author. There are Canadians who delight in accusing our military leaders of only being able to fight the last war. Our generals and admirals, they tell […]
Naval Force Development
27 posts
There is an article in the press that suggest completely different views on when the first operational H-92 ‘Cyclone’ helicopter (CH-148 in Canadian military terms) will be delivered to the Canadian Forces by Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation. Greg Weston’s article for CBC News is entitled ominously “New helicopters may not be […]
* Moderator’s Note: This message was sent out last week by email to all naval addresses in conjunction with the announcement of major changes to the national-level CF headquarters structure. “Many of you may have heard that important changes were coming for the RCN. Today these changes are being officially […]
The Telegraph published an article by Thomas Harding entitled: “Aircraft carrier costs will be half of what you think, US tells ministers, “ on 24 March 2012. Harding quotes Assistant Secretary of the US Navy, Sean J Stackley, as saying that converting HMS Prince of Wales so that she can […]
David Pugliese is reporting in the Ottawa Citizen, “Head of the Royal Canadian Navy says he has enough ships,” that Admiral Maddison said “he is happy with the number of ships the service operates and he doesn’t need any more.” This is a staggeringly uninspired statement by the institutional leader of […]
An article in the January 2012 issue of Proceedings by Senior Chief Jim Murphy, USN (ret.), proposes an interesting approach to meeting budgetary cuts that will inevitably need to be made among the American sea services. It is available free to non-subscribers here. Murphy suggests a true top-to-bottom ‘zero-based’ review […]
One of my favourite definitions about the meaning of military transformation comes from General Peter J. Schoomaker, Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army from 01 August 2003 to 10 April 2007. This is how he defined transformation in a speech made on 11 April 2005: “Transformation is a journey. It […]
Ken Hansen has exposed yet another issue concerning defence procurement. The people who prepared the SOR for the CH 148 Cyclone failed to consider the full range of combat and non-combat operations that the CF may have to undertake over the life of that helicopter. If they had considered the […]
There are now two new Sikorsky CH-148 ‘Cyclone’ maritime helicopters at Shearwater. (You can read more about the Maritime Helicopter Project here.) The first arrived in May and a number (which varies depending on the source) of ‘interim’ aircraft will follow soon. The ‘final configuration’ aircraft are supposed to begin […]
Rumours have been swirling ever since Lieutenant-General Andrew Leslie submitted his report on transformation to the CDS that there was big trouble brewing. John Ibbitsen writes in today’s Globe and Mail, in an article entitled “Discord over cuts leaves direction of Canadian military up in the air,” that “Senior officers […]