Jesus Christ. I know that the maritime arm of the CF is probably suffering in funds(just like everyone else with a major ground conflict going on somewhere), but, you know, this kinda stuff never ceases to amaze me.Documents obtained by the Toronto Star show there were problems getting vital equipment and supplies for the frigate, along with fierce internal military squabbles.
Canada and other countries can't detain and prosecute the armed Somali pirates because of a loophole of international law that is now on United Nations Security Council's agenda. Under the Safety of Life at Sea Convention, the Canadians made an impromptu decision to give the Somalis blue NATO backpacks loaded with bottled water as they sent them back to the coast in their pirate boats.
The post-operation report on the NATO-led mission showed the most vital part of the Winnipeg's mission – boarding pirate skiffs to search for and seize weapons and gather intelligence – was perhaps the most disorganized.
A request for replacement handheld radios was refused and evidence-gathering video cameras, which "succumbed to catastrophic failure" upon arrival in the Gulf of Aden, were not replaced because of "significant bureaucratic roadblocks."
Members of the naval boarding party, the rifle-toting team that searches the pirate boats, were denied military-issued boots, hats and uniforms necessary to do their jobs.
.....
"It cannot be overstated how critical Winnipeg's embarked Sea King was to mission success," he wrote. "The helicopter was integral to every major piracy event that Winnipeg was involved in."
Later in the report, he concludes "it should not be acceptable to jeopardize mission success by reducing flight hours during the Counter-Piracy commitment."
Despite the headaches and disagreements, Baines dubbed the mission an unqualified success, noting in part a level of national and international media interest "that is unprecedented in recent naval operations."
CF Anti-Piracy mission in a death spiral?
Moderators: Alyrium Denryle, Edi, K. A. Pital
CF Anti-Piracy mission in a death spiral?
Toronto Star
"The rifle itself has no moral stature, since it has no will of its own. Naturally, it may be used by evil men for evil purposes, but there are more good men than evil, and while the latter cannot be persuaded to the path of righteousness by propaganda, they can certainly be corrected by good men with rifles."
Re: CF Anti-Piracy mission in a death spiral?
I can't overstate the amount of bureaucratic bullshit that interferes with CF operations on a daily basis, add in the fact that the Navy is the "step-child" branch ATM, thanks to Afghanistan sucking up funds and the fact that they no doubt had to radio back to NDHQ to ask what to do with these guys...and you have a pointless, waste of time mission.
This type of shit was common was I was in the Army, wearing uniforms that you could see through, thirty year old body armour, trucks so rusted you could poke through the hull with your bayonet, one pair of boots, etc.
It's the Navy's turn now. Poor fuckers.
This type of shit was common was I was in the Army, wearing uniforms that you could see through, thirty year old body armour, trucks so rusted you could poke through the hull with your bayonet, one pair of boots, etc.
It's the Navy's turn now. Poor fuckers.
M1891/30: A bad day on the range is better then a good day at work.
