Royal United Services Institute of
Vancouver Island (RUSI-VI)

Canadian contracted helicopter flights

by Maj Jay Janzen

In the early morning sun, two Canadian-contracted Mi-8 helicopters lifted off from Kandahar Air Field in Afghanistan, carrying valuable supplies to troops in Canadian forward operating bases in Kandahar Province. The flights on Nov. 17 marked the first time these aircraft have been employed under a new contract that increases Task Force Kandahar's air capability.

Colonel Christopher Coates, Joint Task Force - Afghanistan Air Wing Commander, said the addition of this new capability will "get Canadians off the roads in Afghanistan where they are exposed to all the dangers of this country - ambushes and IEDs [improvised explosive devices] and the other things that all Canadians are aware of."

"The Canadian aviation community, that I'm very much a part of back in Canada, is very excited to be here and it's something we've wanted to do for quite some time," he added. "We believe we've got a lot to contribute to the operation and we are very excited to be here."

According to Bob Waring, project manager for the Toronto-based Sky Link, the contracted Mi-8 helicopters are ideally suited for operations in Afghanistan. "It is a very versatile aircraft with extremely good capability for high, hot and heavy operations, which is what we are looking at doing here," he said. "It's an austere and difficult environment but we've got the airframes and we've got the crews that are up to the task. We have the best of intelligence, the best of co-ordination, the best of communications, so through that, we are able to do what we need to do."

This summer, the Canadian government announced an air capability for the mission in Afghanistan that includes leasing helicopters to address immediate needs, purchasing six Chinook helicopters, and acquiring unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. The need for this additional capacity was set out in the March 13 parliamentary motion to extend Canada's military mission in Afghanistan until 2011.

Obtaining these additional air resources was also one of the recommendations of the Independent Panel on Canada's Future Role in Afghanistan, headed by John Manley.

Late this summer, Joint Task Force-Afghanistan began using the new Scan Eagle UAV in support of its operations. The Heron UAV tactical system has been leased and is expected to commence operations in Kandahar Province in early 2009. Chinook D-model helicopters are being purchased from the US government and are expected to be flying in support of operations by February 2009.

In a statement announcing Canada's new air capability this summer, General Walt Natynczyk, Chief of the Defence Staff, said, "The helicopters will allow commanders the flexibility to reduce ground-based resupply convoys and more easily reach remote locations in challenging environments where they could be at risk of ambushes, land mines and improvised explosive devices."

? Maple Leaf December 3, 2008