Vimy Award Call for Nominations

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  July 24, 2018 | Local, Land

  Troops warned about driving habits on Tactical Armoured Patrol Vehicles

  DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN Defence Watch has been told about concerns being raised about the brakes on the Tactical Armoured Patrol Vehicle fleet. But the Department of National Defence says the issue isn't about the brakes but how the vehicles are being driven during training. “Vehicles in the TAPV fleet have not been quarantined, though we have investigated a few incidents involving stopping distances,” DND spokesman Dan Le Bouthillier explained to Defence Watch. “Investigating these types of incidents is a normal part of equipment fielding and integration into the CAF fleet. This is done to identify issues and ensure vehicle and crew safety.” Le Bouthillier said the findings thus far are that the incidents were isolated and occurred during driver training. The TAPV is a heavy vehicle and requires longer stopping distances at higher speeds than most new drivers are familiar with, he added. In over 50 TAPV Driver courses across the country, only two incidents were noted, said Le Bouthillier. Canada is in the midst of acquiring 500 Tactical Armoured Patrol Vehicles. In June 2012, Textron Systems Canada Inc. was awarded two contracts, one for the acquisition of 500 vehicles, valued at $603.4 million, and a second contract for their support at $105.4 million to conduct in-service support for the fleet for five years following the last vehicle delivery, the government noted. The TAPV is a wheeled combat vehicle that will conduct reconnaissance and surveillance, security, command and control, and armoured transport of personnel and equipment. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/troops-warned-about-driving-habits-on-tactical-armoured-patrol-vehicles

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  March 5, 2019 | Local, Aerospace

  CarteNAV and Sentient Vision collaborate on PAL Aerospace winning aerial surveillance bid

  CarteNav and Sentient Vision are pleased to announce their valuable contribution to PAL Aerospace's winning bid to provide the Government of Canada with aerial surveillance capability for Canada's inland, coastal and offshore waters. The contract, delivered on behalf of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, covers an initial five-year period and includes opportunities for PAL Aerospace to earn contract extensions that increase the total life of the agreement to 10 years. As part of the winning bid, PAL aircraft will operate a specially configured Visual Detection and Ranging (ViDAR) array within the CarteNav AIMS mission system. The seamless incorporation of this world-leading ViDAR technology into the AIMS system is a meaningful complement to the capability of the PAL aircraft that will serve this contract. ViDAR is a wide area optical search system capable of operation unaffected by environmental marine obstacles, such as whitecaps, which detrimentally affect traditional technologies. The system is unique in its ability to detect objects as small as fishing buoys and people in the water over significant areas, allowing aircraft operators to map vast swaths of the ocean in real time. ViDAR autonomously locates objects on the surface of the water, transmits a thumbnail and location coordinate back to the AIMS mission system and prompts the operator to investigate further. “Sentient was excited to work with CarteNav on the integration of ViDAR into the AIMS mission system to support this important contract,” said Simon Olsen, Sentient's director of Business Development, Strategy and Partnerships. “Blending these leading edge technologies into a combined offering marks a significant step forward and will now provide a game-changing ocean surface search solution to the Government of Canada.” Both ViDAR and AIMS have extensive records of accomplishment and are in operation on multiple continents across multiple environments in both military and civilian applications. “CarteNav has worked successfully with Sentient for many years, originally on the implementation of the Kestrel Moving Target Indicator (MTI) feature into AIMS, and most recently on integrating ViDAR,” said CarteNav COO Carl Daniels. “AIMS provides an intuitive interface from which operators can take advantage of the capabilities of the ViDAR persistent wide-area maritime search. The addition of ViDAR reaffirms our focus on operator workflow and mission delivery which has established CarteNav as a leader in mission system solutions.” CarteNav's collaboration with Sentient and valued contribution to the winning PAL bid demonstrates a significant combined operating capacity to deliver leading edge services to customers for a variety of maritime surveillance applications. The successful execution of this contract on behalf of the Government of Canada fortifies CarteNav and Sentient's shared credentials in this area and should open the door to capture additional, mutually beneficial opportunities in the future. https://www.skiesmag.com/press-releases/cartenav-and-sentient-vision-collaborate-on-pal-aerospace-winning-aerial-surveillance-bid

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  September 9, 2020 | Local, Aerospace

  Canada’s Air Task Force – Romania begins 2020 NATO enhanced Air Policing mission

  On Sept. 3, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Air Task Force – Romania (ATF-Romania) received their readiness certification from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) during a certification ceremony held at the Romanian Air Force Base Mihail Kogalniceanu. This certification allowed the Task Force to officially begin their enhanced Air Policing mission under Operation Reassurance in Romania on Saturday, Sept. 5. During this mission, the detachment from the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), consisting of approximately 135 personnel and six CF-18 Hornet fighter jets, will help secure the skies over Romania until December 2020. The Air Task Force will work with the Romanian Air Force under NATO command and control as part of Operation Reassurance, which is Canada's contribution to NATO assurance and deterrence measures. Protection measures against COVID-19 were taken during the certification ceremony to ensure the health and safety of all present. While conducting their mission, the Air Task Force members are working alongside our regional partners and Allies in Romania, and taking all the necessary precautions to minimize the risk to the safety of our personnel and the local population. Despite the limitations of operating in a COVID-19 environment, the CAF have remained agile and able to conduct successful missions around the world, all while adhering to both domestic and host nation COVID-19 safety requirements. “Every year, this Air Task Force provides a concrete example of Canada's commitment to NATO's collective defence,” said MGen Eric Kenny, Commander 1 Canadian Air Division and Joint Forces Air Component Commander. “Air Policing is a critical part of NATO's mandate and is a mission our crews excel at, thanks to their training and experience with our own 24/7/365 NORAD mandate. I know they will take every opportunity to share their knowledge and learn from our Romanian and regional allies, as they help secure the Romanian skies.” “Having deployed on this mission in 2014, I know how much our pilots and entire Task Force benefit from this opportunity to work with our NATO allies,” said LCol David McLeod, Commander of Air Task Force – Romania. “COVID-19 has not dulled the enthusiasm of the great team that comes with me and I know their knowledge and professionalism will be evident throughout the deployment. Working alongside our NATO allies is critical to collective defence but also provides an invaluable opportunity to learn from one another. I am honoured to be back as the Air Task Force Commander, and I am looking forward to working and flying alongside our Romanian allies again.” Quick Facts During the mission, Canadian fighter pilots, mostly from 433 Tactical Fighter Squadron (433 TFS), will hold a quick reaction alert posture to augment Romanian air policing capabilities. They will also fly training missions together with the Romanian Air Force, as well as other regional Allies and partners. This will include patrolling Romanian air space and, if necessary, intercepting any aircraft that enter it without authorization. Operation Reassurance is Canada's contribution to NATO assurance and deterrence measures, which demonstrates Canada's ability and willingness to react rapidly to international crises and to work side by side with its NATO Allies to reinforce NATO's collective security. Air Task Force – Romania is the Air component of the mission. The Canadian Armed Forces have supported the mission since 2014, with this deployment marking the fifth time Canada has sent a detachment to Romania in support of NATO's enhanced Air Policing. https://www.skiesmag.com/press-releases/canadas-air-task-force-romania-begins-2020-nato-enhanced-air-policing-mission/