Cold reality: Canadian troops struggle in Alaska as military relearns Arctic warfare
Internal evaluations reveal gaps in winter soldiering, medical prep and equipment
A series of internal Department of National Defence documents suggest Canadian troops were ill-prepared and occasionally ill-equipped for the harsh conditions they faced last winter during a major training exercise with American forces in Alaska.
asserted
they → struggle → Alaska
The evaluation reports, obtained by CBC News, show the military has a lot to learn and a long way to go to rebuild its capability to defend the Arctic.
asserted
military → obtain → Arctic
The training involved over 400 members of the 3rd Battalion Royal Canadian Regiment (3RCR) which was folded into a much larger U.S. Army brigade during Exercise Global Response in February at the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center, north of Fairbanks, Alaska.
asserted
which → involve → Fairbanks
The Carney government has committed to an almost year-round presence in the Far North and the reports indicate, among other things, that troops will need to learn to rely less on technology and more on basic skills in order to fight and survive, according to defence experts.
uncertain
troops → commit → experts
Separate Canadian and American evaluations were prepared and both show a litany of concerns that raise questions about how prepared troops and their equipment are to fight in harsh conditions, where the temperatures plunge below –30 C.
"Throughout their stay in the waiting area the Coy [Company] consistently demonstrated a lack of preparations needed to live in Arctic conditions," said an undated Canadian evaluation, which assessed individual companies within the battalion.
asserted
which → prepare → battalion
The report was critical of a recent initiative which allowed the regiment to purchase off-the-shelf civilian equipment to augment military cold-weather gear — something that created problems.
asserted
that → allow → problems
"This was evident when observing soldiers attempting to remedy issues with a Coleman stove and lanterns or watching them attempt to set up a 10-man tent," said the evaluation, obtained by CBC News.
asserted
evaluation → observe → News
It said that among some Canadian units there was a "lack of emphasis on basic winter soldiering skills."
asserted
It → say → skills
In an interview, Lt.-Col. Aaron Corey, the commander of 3RCR, disagreed and said his troops trained for winter conditions for a year before the Alaska training deployment.
asserted
troops → disagree → deployment
"Every soldier to go up on that exercise had to be a cold weather operator qualified," Corey said.
asserted
Corey → go → exercise
"All of our leaders from the sections and up, we received cold weather leader training and then we had Arctic operations advisers that were sprinkled into the battalion as well.
asserted
that → receive → battalion
He added the battalion "put a lot of effort into preparations for this exercise in the year preceding it and to get back to a level of winter warfare — or Arctic warfare — that we haven't seen in a few years."
Canadian soldiers have wrestled with the problem of fighting in extreme cold for decades, and even prepared for the possibility of Soviet attack across the polar region during the early Cold War.
asserted
soldiers → add → War
The Alaskan exercise reports did note that despite the challenges — and as many as 30 troops suffering various levels of frostbite — the battalion was successful in the exercise by capturing its training objectives.
asserted
battalion → note → objectives
Corey said troops learned valuable lessons, most notably how they have to slow down and take the weather into account, more so than when they are on operations in other parts of the world.
asserted
they → say → world
"We had the enemy and the weather, which was a greater enemy in most cases," Corey said.
asserted
Corey → have → cases
"So we had to slow down.
asserted
we → have → ?
We had to make sure that our troops had warming cycles.
asserted
troops → have → cycles
We had to slow down because the kit and equipment you're carrying is heavier.
asserted
you → have → ?
We had to slow down because there's more energy being exerted as you fight your way through the muskeg or up the mountains.
asserted
you → have → mountains
The Ottawa Citizen previously reported on the frostbite casualties.
asserted
Citizen → report → casualties
The documents obtained by CBC News, however, paint a broader picture of the challenges faced by the regiment.
asserted
documents → obtain → regiment
One document noted how "several gaps emerged regarding the medical team's understanding of their required tasks" during the exercise.
asserted
gaps → note → exercise
Canadian Coast Guard tests Arctic surveillance drone as air force delivery stalls
Military satellite deal could set stage for new battle over cabinet secrecy
uncertain
deal → test → secrecy
The medics thought they were only on standby to treat real casualties, not participate in the training scenario, said an undated evaluation prepared for the health services branch.
asserted
evaluation → think → branch
On three occasions some of them were seen using personal phones for long calls, giving away their positions to the enemy.
asserted
some → see → enemy
It was also noted that the medical team was only given a four-hour professional development seminar on Arctic medicine principles rather than a five-day U.S.-led course at the Arctic medicine simulation centre.
asserted
team → note → centre
Chief Warrant Officer Robert McSpadden, the regimental sergeant major for 3RCR, said he found the medical team to be outstanding, especially when it came to treating the frostbite casualties.
asserted
it → say → casualties
He said he couldn't speak to the training decisions.
asserted
he → say → decisions
The Canadians also ran into problems with the rapid cold weather draining batteries for their drones, leaving in some cases only 10 minutes of flying time.
asserted
weather → run → time
The separate American assessment, prepared by the Ted Stevens Center for Arctic Security Studies and published online, noted how U.S. units experienced similar difficulties.
asserted
units → prepare → difficulties
It pointed to basic preparation problems such as a lack of snowclearing equipment and a shortage of fuel to keep engines running in order to prevent them from freezing.
asserted
It → point → them
Retired colonel Pierre Leblanc, who served in the Far North in command positions in the late 1990s, said it's been almost a generation since Canadian troops were present in large numbers in the Arctic and many skills will have to be relearned.
asserted
skills → retire → Arctic
"It's a different world," said Leblanc, who noted the unpredictability of the weather and the vast distances made it the most challenging place to operate he'd ever encountered.
asserted
he → say → weather
He used the example of having to dispatch a repair team to a North Warning System radar location during his tenure.
asserted
He → use → tenure
It was supposed to be a simple job, lasting only a few hours.
asserted
It → suppose → hours
The team was stuck there for 21 days, Leblanc said.
asserted
Leblanc → stick → days
Today's high-tech, web-enabled, satellite-tethered military needs a serious back-to-basics approach in a place where technology can't be counted on, he said.
"If you rely too much on it, you're going to very quickly have a problem.
asserted
you → enable → problem
Have to be able to work with very, very basic systems," said Leblanc.
asserted
Leblanc → have → systems
Rob Huebert, an Arctic defence expert at the University of Calgary, said the Canadian military in the 1950s and 60s was expert at training and fighting in the Far North.
asserted
military → say → North
For example, in February 1950, more than 5,000 Canadian and American troops took part in Exercise Sweetbriar along the Alaska Highway between Whitehorse and Alaska, specifically testing how combined forces could move, fight and sustain themselves in Arctic conditions.
uncertain
forces → take → conditions
…and 10 more, not listed.
The Aporia
