Les militaires du monde s’intéressent aux recherches sur le givre de l’UQAC

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  26 octobre 2018 | Local, Naval

  Coast guard ship breakdown ends 48-year science survey streak

  Paul Withers · CBC News North Atlantic Fisheries Organization meeting highlighted unreliability of Canada's research vessels For the first time in 48 years, Canadian fisheries scientists failed to complete an annual summer survey off Nova Scotia because of a mechanical breakdown on their coast guard research ship, adding to concerns over the reliability of Canada's research vessel fleet. "There have been instances in the past where we have been unable to do sections of a survey, but we've been usually able to cover most of the area in question," said Kent Smedbol, regional manager of population ecology at DFO Science Maritimes. "This is the first time that a substantial portion of the survey we were not able to complete." The 36-year-old coast guard ship Alfred Needler was scheduled to carry out the summer survey, which involves bottom trawling for multiple species and environment data collection, on the Scotian Shelf from Cape Breton to Georges Bank. The information would have been used to predict commercial fish stocks that support fisheries worth tens of millions of dollars. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans has been conducting the survey since 1970 from its base at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography in Halifax. Salt water knocks out motor, generator But even before the survey started in July, salt water in rough seas got into — and burned out — the Needler's trawl motor and generator, rendering the vessel unusable, said deputy coast guard commissioner Mario Pelletier. "That's critical equipment in order to conduct the survey, so they needed to come back to repair it," Pelletier told CBC News. "And given what just happened we wanted to make sure to prevent it so it doesn't happen in the future. So we put some extra work to make sure it would be protected from future salt water exposure should the ship be in rough seas again." 'We do what we can with the resources' DFO tried, but was unable, to charter a commercial fishing trawler. Another coast guard research vessel, the Teleost, was pressed into service for an abbreviated mission. The southern Scotian Shelf from Yarmouth to Halifax was sampled but two-thirds was missed entirely. "It is difficult. This is what we are asked to do by the department. So we do what we can with the resources we have at hand," said Smedbol. Stock assessment for species north of Halifax will not be updated this year. The Teleost broke off the survey at the end of July to carry out a scheduled ecosystem survey in Quebec. "Given our survey was already delayed, we didn't want to impact the survey in another region by trying maintain the use of the Teleost. It was best to have a full survey uninterrupted in the other region," said Smedbol. Same ship missed another survey in 2018 This was the second time in 2018 the Needler was sidelined and unavailable for a scheduled science survey. It also missed the annual winter survey on Georges Bank because it was stuck in an extended refit. Wasted steel decking had been discovered. The Teleost was expected to fill in on the Georges Bank mission. However, it was also unavailable because its scheduled refit had to be extended. In that case, DFO was able to charter the Mersey Venture at cost of $300,000 for an abbreviated 11-day mission. International criticism of Canadian 'deficiencies' The unreliability of Canadian government research vessels, including the Needler, was highlighted at a science council meeting of the North Atlantic Fisheries Organization this past June. Canada provides scientific survey data in areas off its coast to the international fisheries management agency. The NAFO science council report said "substantive mechanical issues with the Canadian research vessels resulted in very poor coverage of [Division 3L]" off southern Newfoundland in 2017. "This marks the second time in three years that the spring survey coverage of Division 3L has been very poor." The council report said that in 2017, for the third time in four years, a deepwater survey off Labrador was not covered, and for the fifth time in six years, a deepwater survey was not covered in southern Newfoundland. The scientists said the data holes make it harder to evaluate trends in biomass and abundance for a number of species. "Deficiencies in survey coverage also add uncertainty to the results of research on environmental trends and ecosystem status, functioning and productivity," the science council said. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/coast-guard-ship-breakdown-ends-48-year-survey-streak-1.4877209

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  4 février 2019 | Local, Autre défense

  Evolving battlespace triggers training innovation

  BY ROBIN BILLINGHAM © 2019 FrontLine (Vol 16, No 1) The global shift to full-spectrum warfare and in-and-out mission fighting have given rise to an evolution in training requirements and methodologies. Previous training technologies were helpful in many ways, including cost savings on operational equipment, but were limited in scope and time-consuming to prepare. Innovative developers have now taken the simulation option to the next level. Digitally-simulated training environments can enhance a soldier's real-time decision-making abilities and improve the likelihood of mission success when confronted by an unconventional enemy – and that was the aim of previous generation technologies. Significant cost-savings are also achieved through these training systems and is a major reason why they have been widely implemented. The evolution of large scale digital training exercises developed quite rapidly once it became feasible to exercise without the huge expense of sending brigades or divisions into the field. Soon, digital exercises were set up to improve responses and efficiencies for all aspects relating to the warfighting effort. Exercise Unified Resolve was initiated in 2012 and has become an annual computer-assisted exercise designed to test command and control capabilities within the Canadian Army. Speaking about Unified Resolve back in 2016, Brigadier-General Trevor Cadieu noted the criticality of simulation exercises for the leadership of the brigade. “It allows us to stress test some of our planning and procedures without needing to pull 4,000 troops into the field, away from their families and other duties,” said then-Commander of 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group. Full article: https://defence.frontline.online/article/2019/1/11101-Evolving-battlespace-triggers-training-innovation

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  12 février 2018 | Local, Aérospatial

  Arrival of used Aussie fighters pushed back to summer 2019 or later

  Senior defence official says Canada will take used Aussie FA-18s as they become available It will be 2022 before the Royal Canadian Air Force receives all of the used Australian fighter jets the Liberal government intends to purchase, says senior defence official. The plan was rolled out with much fanfare at the end of last year because the air force has faced — in the words of Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan — an "urgent capability gap" and is not able to meet its NATO and Norad commitments at the same time. Pat Finn, who is in charge of the materiale branch of National Defence, told CBC News in a recent interview a final agreement is still months away. He is confident, however, everything will come together. Delivery is "staggered over three years," Finn said. The Trudeau government announced in December it would buy 18 used Australian "classic" FA-18s as an interim measure to bolster the air force until the entire Canadian fleet of CF-18s is replaced, beginning in the mid-2020s. It had wanted to buy brand new Boeing Super Hornets, the newer, bigger, more advanced version of the FA-18 and CF-18. The plan was scuttled when the manufacturer, Chicago-based Boeing, filed a trade complaint against Canadian aerospace giant Bombardier. No price tag for the Australian deal was released at the time of the formal announcement, which was made by Sajjan and Public Works Minister Carla Qualtrough. Ongoing discussions Finn said those details are still being worked out. The Liberal government said in December the first used fighters, which were purchased by Australia around the same Canada bought its CF-18s, would arrive by January 2019. Finn said the delivery schedule is being finalized, but he anticipates receiving the first two warplanes by the summer of that year. Another one would follow by the end of the year, but much depends on the Royal Australian Air Force and how quickly it retires the fighters and the age of what's being offered. "They, of course, release aircraft as they get aircraft," Finn said. "We do not necessarily want the oldest aircraft, so we would like to have an ongoing discussion." He said there is some flexibility and if "summer '19 turns into" something a few months later because they can get a better jet, then it's something that can be negotiated. The Australian government is in the process of seeking permission to sell the planes because they were originally manufactured in the U.S. Once the Australian warplanes arrive in Canada, they will need to be given life-extension modifications that will bring them up to the standard of the CF-18s, which have been modified to continuing flying until 2025. It stands in stark contrast to the urgency with which the Liberals initially painted the shortage of fighter aircraft. "In 2025, the CF-18s will not be able to fly, and it is important that we move very quickly in filling this capability gap." said Sajjan in June 2016. Finn said the air force is managing the capability gap by making more CF-18s available for operations on a daily basis. "We're basically working right now to increase the availability of our current airplanes," he said. Experts say that would mean pouring more than expected into the maintenance budget in order to keep fighters on the flight line. Urgent purchase? One defence analyst said the government has a strange definition of urgent. "Nothing about the handling of this file lines up with the identification of it as an urgent need, either the interim or the permanent purchase," said Dave Perry, an expert in procurement at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute. He said he believes it will present a political headache for the Liberals come the next election. "The fact that this government may, at best, have a couple of second-hand aircraft before the next election after having identified an urgent need to acquire new fighter aircraft is just incredible," he said. When the Australian deal was announced, the government also laid out a timeline for the full replacement of the CF-18s, which were purchased in the 1980s, but extensively modified and upgraded in the early 2000s. Public Works recently held a consultation day with defence contractors, but Perry says no one seems to understand why it will take until the early 2020s to launch the competition. When the former Conservative government was struggling over whether to buy the F-35 stealth fighter, it conducted extensive research on the alternatives and possible types of warplanes Canada would need. That research, which conceivable could move things along faster, was largely discarded by the Liberals and is gathering dust on a shelf, Perry says. http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/aussie-fighter-jets-1.4530875