Canadian Forces
The
Canadian Forces (
French:
Forces Canadiennes), abbreviated as
CF (French:
FC) are the combined
armed forces of
Canada.
The operational elements of the Canadian Forces are:
Maritime Command (MARCOM), or the
navy;
Land Force Command (LFC) or the
army;
Air Command (AIRCOM), or the
air force;
Canada Command (CANCOM), responsible for all operations within Canada;
Canadian Expeditionary Force Command (CEFCOM), responsible for operations outside of Canada; and
Canadian Special Operations Forces Command (CSOFCOM), responsible for
special forces and secret deployments of the CF.
The Canadian Forces are governed by the
National Defence Act, which states::
The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces. (
National Defence Act, R.S., 1985, c.N-4, s-14)
The Canadian Forces was formed on February 1, 1968, when the
Canadian government merged the Canadian Army, the
Royal Canadian Navy and the
Royal Canadian Air Force into a unified structure. Canada remains one of the few developed countries in the world to organize its military forces like this.
Air Defence Command, Air Transport Command, Mobile Command (later renamed Force Mobile Command and currently Land Force Command), Materiel Command, Training Command and Maritime Command were all formed on
February 1,
1968. Communication Command was formed on
September 1,
1970. On
September 2,
1975, Air Defence Command, Air Transport Command and Training Command were disbanded and realigned when Air Command was formed. Materiel Command was disbanded during the
1980s and Communication Command was disbanded in the mid-1990s at the same time as Force Mobile Command was renamed. Canada Command was formed on
January 31,
2006. Canadian Expeditionary Force Command and Canadian Special Operations Forces Command were both formed on
February 1,
2006.
By the
Canadian Constitution, the
Command-in-Chief of the Canadian Forces is vested in
Queen Elizabeth II, as
Queen of Canada.
[Constitution Act, 1867] However, since 1904 the Monarch has allowed the Canadian
viceroy to exercise the duties ascribed to that post, and since 1905 to hold the title
Commander-in-Chief.
[Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Forces.] The current
Governor General and Commander-in-Chief is
Michaëlle Jean. Under the
Westminster system's parliamentary custom and practice, however, the
Prime Minister of Canada holds
de facto decision-making power over the deployment and disposition of Canadian forces. The military head of the Canadian Forces is the
Chief of Defence Staff (Canada). The Cabinet officer in charge of the Canadian Forces is the
Minister of National Defence (MND), who answers to the Prime Minister. Declarations of War must be signed by the
Canadian Monarch or
Governor General.
The Canadian Forces' are commanded by
National Defence Headquarters located in
Ottawa,
Ontario. Canadian Forces personnel train to defend Canadian sovereignty, and serve operationally in Canada, in support of
NATO tasks, and around the world in international and
United Nations peace missions.
[Not all missions are UN or NATO; the MFO, for example, is neither.]Early days
Prior to confederation, local citizens served as regular members of French and British forces and in
local militia groups. Local militias defended their homeland from Indian raids and British invasions, and from American forces during the
American Revolution, the
War of 1812 and in the
Fenian Raids. After Confederation in 1867, Canada's forces remained under British command until the turn of the 20th century. Several Canadian units were raised to serve under
British command in the
Second Boer War.
Some units in the Canadian Forces derive their lineage to before the War of 1812 when militia units were formed to assist in defending
British North America from invasions by the
United States. The land forces were known by the traditional name Militia until 1940, when for the first time Canadian Army was bestowed. The title was changed after Unification as the land forces became part of the Canadian Forces. The land forces became known as Force Mobile Command, and later as Land Force Command. The Royal Canadian Navy was created in
1910 and the Royal Canadian Air Force in
1924.
Canadian soldiers, sailors and aviators came to be considered world class professionals through conspicuous service in the
First World War, the
Second World War and the
Korean War.
Operations
|
The Sherman tank was the mainstay of Canadian armoured forces from 1943 to 1954. |
The Canadian Forces or its component regiments have served operationally in the
War of 1812, the
Fenian Raids (1866-1871),
North-West Rebellion (1885), the
Second Boer War (1899-1902), the
First World War, the
Second World War, the
Korean War, the
First Gulf War, the
Kosovo war (1999), and have contributed to UN and other peacekeeping missions and undeclared wars, notably the
Suez Crisis,
Golan Heights,
Cyprus,
Croatia,
Bosnia, and the
War on Terrorism (Afghanistan). Canada is a charter member of
NATO and a member of the North American Air Defence treaty (
NORAD).
Battles which are particularly notable to the Canadian military include the
Battle of Vimy Ridge in the First World War and, in the Second World War, the
Dieppe Raid, the
Battle of Ortona, the
Normandy Landings, the
Battle of the Scheldt, the
Battle of Britain, the
Battle of the Atlantic, and the
strategic bombing of German cities.
At the end of the Second World War, areas of the Netherlands north of the rivers Rhine and Lek were liberated from the Nazi-German occupying forces almost solely by Canadian formations. After restoring law and order they left the countries within several months.
Since 1947, the CF has participated in more than 200 operations worldwide. In 2002, nearly 3000 Canadian troops were on active duty in 11 additional operations including the international war on terrorism in Afghanistan and the
NATO stabilization force (SFOR) in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Canadian regular and reserve troops are a visible and respected force at home as well. In 2001 alone, the Canadian Forces responded to more than 8,000 search-and-rescue incidents and helped to save more than 4,500 lives.
Postwar developments
At the end of the Second World War, Canada possessed the third-largest navy and fourth-largest air force in the world, as well as the largest volunteer army ever fielded by Canada. (
Conscription for overseas service was introduced only near the end of the war, and only 2400 conscripts actually made it into battle). Defence spending and troop strengths remained high during the early years of the
Cold War, but began to decline in the late 1960s and 1970s as the perceived threat from the
Warsaw Pact diminished. Throughout the 1990s, successive budget cuts forced further reductions in the personnel, number of bases, and fighting ability of the Canadian Forces. Sizable Canadian air and land forces were maintained in West Germany under NATO command from the end of World War II until the early 1990s. There has been criticism of these budget cuts, as
military spending has been reduced to only 1.4% of GDP; many argue that these cuts have hindered modernization of the Canadian Forces.
Modern reorganization
 |
Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan |
Unlike the armed forces of Canada's closest allies the Canadian Forces is a single organization with a unified command structure. "The March
1964 White Paper on Defence outlined a major restructuring of the separate services. The White Paper described a reorganization that would include the integration of operations, logistics support, personnel and administration of the separate services under a functional command system."[
6]
On
February 1,
1968,
Bill C-243, The Canadian Forces Reorganization Act became law and the
Royal Canadian Navy (RCN), the Canadian Army and the
Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) were combined into one service - the Canadian Forces. The public position was that unification was undertaken for purposes of cost savings and improved command and control. Contemporary rhetoric and accusations were made that the Liberal Government and Defence Minister
Paul Hellyer did not care for the traditions behind each service, and that the name
Canadian Armed Forces, shortened to
Canadian Forces, (in Canada's post-war
modernist fashion) was easily translated to
French and eliminated inconvenient
monarchist references during a contentious period in Canadian history. The reorganization has been criticized, for example by
J. L. Granatstein in
Who Killed the Canadian Military? In particular, the wholesale replacement of traditional naval/army/air force identities with army-style ranks and rifle-green uniforms had done considerable damage to the
esprit de corps of the Canadian Forces.
Today the Canadian Forces remains a single service, but each member now belongs to one of three "elements": land, air or sea, each with its distinctive uniform. The element is usually determined by the individual member's trade: for example, a pilot is automatically in the air element. However, for non-specific or "purple" trades, such as medical technician or military police, the element is assigned more or less at random. The element remains unchanged throughout the member's career, regardless of the member's unit or base.
On February 1, 1968 the CF was composed of six commands:
*
Air Defence Command*
Air Transport Command*
Mobile Command*
Maritime Command*
Materiel Command*
Training CommandEach command was envisioned to be vertically integrated with the complementary requirements of the other commands. Mobile Command was to provide combat-ready land forces and tactical air forces for deployment in defence of Canada, or for NATO or UN missions. It consisted of former army units, as well as ground attack and tactical airlift aircraft as well as light and heavy transport and assault helicopters, through its Tactical Air Group. Air Transport Command was responsible for strategic airlift of troops and equipment while Air Defence Command provided fighter interceptors and ground-based radar surveillance for defending Canadian and North American airspace under NORAD. Training Command was responsible for training personnel throughout the CF while Materiel Command provided logistical supply and maintenance services throughout the CF. Maritime Command was the only command which maintained its exclusive environmental control. Maritime Command also had control of the Maritime Air Group, which provided coastal patrol aircraft, ship-borne anti-submarine helicopters, and fighter interceptors, helicopters and patrol aircraft for Canada's only aircraft carrier, HMCS
Bonaventure. In addition to these commands there were several independent organizations reporting to CF Headquarters:
* Reserve and National Survival
* Communications System
* Canadian Forces Europe
On September 1, 1970, Communications System was elevated to command status and became
Communication Command.
On September 2, 1975 the air element was reorganized with Air Defence Command and Air Transport Command and Training Command being disbanded and all air operations in the CF being grouped under a new command named
Air Command. Training was still centralized for all services, however specialized training began to be provided by each environmental element. At some point Mobile Command was also renamed to Force Mobile Command.
Materiel Command was disbanded during the 1980s and Communications Command was disbanded during a mid-1990s reorganization, with its units reorganized into the Information Management Group, reporting to CFHQ. Force Mobile Command was also renamed at this time, becoming Land Force Command.
On
February 1,
2006, the CF added four operational commands to the existing structure:
*
Canada Command*
Canadian Expeditionary Force Command*
Canadian Special Operations Forces Command*
Canadian Operational Support Command |
Canadian ADATS firing a missile |
Canadian army
brigades are administered through four geographically determined area commands:
*
LF Atlantic Area based in Halifax
*
LF Quebec Area based in Montreal
*
LF Central Area based in Toronto
*
LF Western Area based in Edmonton.In each command (except Atlantic), regular force troops comprising a mechanized brigade group (CMBG) are supported by
reserve forces in nine brigade groups. Regular forces in the Atlantic command are based in the Combat Training School at CFB Gagetown.
Today, Land Force Command (army) consists of three field-ready brigades:
*1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group in Edmonton, Alberta,
*2 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group in CFB Petawawa, Ontario, and
*5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group in CFB Valcartier, Quebec (the francophone brigade).Each brigade contains one regiment each of
artillery,
armour, and
combat engineers and three
battalions of
infantry (all scaled in the British fashion), as well as a service battalion (
logistics), a
headquarters/
signals squadron, and several minor organizations. A tactical helicopter squadron and a field ambulance are collocated with each brigade but not part of the brigade's command structure.
Major training establishments and non-brigaded troops exist at
CFB Gagetown and
ASU St-Jean (now attached to CFB Montreal.) Each area also has an Area Training Centre.
Canada's naval forces include 35 ships and submarines and many more auxiliary vessels. The ships are deployed in two fleets, Maritime Forces Pacific (MARPAC) at
CFB Esquimalt on the west coast, and Maritime Forces Atlantic (MARLANT) at
CFB Halifax on the east coast. There is no permanent naval presence on the Arctic coast at this time.
MARCOM participates in
NATO exercises, and ships are deployed all over the world in support of the Canadian military and in conjunction with multinational deployments.
The Canadian fleet comprises:
| Class | Type | Number | Dates | Details |
|---|
| Halifax | frigate | 12 | 1992 | The backbone of MARCOM, the twelve Halifax-class frigates carry the Sea King helicopters of the Air Force as well as anti-submarine torpedoes and anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles. |
| Iroquois | destroyer | 3 | 1972 | Area-air-defence and command-and-control destroyers with Sea King helicopters, refitted in the 1990s from anti-submarine role. |
| Kingston | patrol | 12 | 1995 | Coastal surveillance, general naval operations and exercises, search and rescue, law enforcement, resource protection, fisheries patrols and mine countermeasure capabilities. |
| Protecteur | auxiliary | 2 | 1968 | At-sea resupply of frigates and destroyers and medical support. |
| Victoria | submarine | 4 | 2000 | Diesel-electric hunter-killer submarines with long-range patrol capability. |
| Endeavour | survey | 1 | 1965 | Oceanographic hydrographic research ship - since retired |
| Orca | patrol | 8 | 2007 | Training and inshore patrol. |
|
Canada's air force is deployed at 13 bases across Canada under the overall direction of 1 Canadian Air Division and constitutes the Canadian
NORAD Region. Major air bases are located in
British Columbia,
Alberta,
Saskatchewan,
Ontario,
Quebec,
Nova Scotia, and
Newfoundland and Labrador while administrative and command-control facilities are located in
Winnipeg and
North Bay. A Canadian component of the
NATO Airborne Early Warning Force is based in Geilenkirchen, Germany. Wings vary in size from several hundred personnel to several thousand.
Principal aircraft include (numbers are from CF official website):
Canada Command is an operational element created
January 31,
2006, to improve response time to domestic terrorism and natural disasters. It is responsible for the management of the army, navy, and air force to ensure national security, both in emergency and routine situations. Canada Command is analogous to and works closely with the
United States Northern Command as well as the United States
Department of Homeland Security.
The leader of Canada Command, currently
Vice Admiral Jean-Yves Forcier, reports directly to the
Chief of Defence Staff. Citing personal reasons, Vice Admiral Forcier announced his retirement on
February 22,
2006 [
7]. No replacement has been named.
Under the a transformed CF structure, Canadian Expeditionary Force Command (CEFCOM) is responsible for the planning, and conduct of all Canadian Forces (CF) international operations, with the exception of operations conducted solely by the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command (CANSOFCOM).
CEFCOM will bring together, under one operational command, maritime, land, air and special operations forces assets to conduct humanitarian, peace support or combat operations wherever they are required internationally.
The creation of CEFCOM is based on the new international security environment. Understanding that security in Canada ultimately begins with stability abroad, CEFCOM will allow the CF to specifically meet and manage threats to Canadian security as far away from our borders as possible.
Headquartered in Ottawa, CEFCOM will also be responsible for setting standards to ensure units and personnel selected for deployment are fully qualified and ready to conduct overseas duties.
The organizations under command of CEFCOM include:
*a Standing Contingency Task Force (SCTF) capable of rapidly responding to international crises. This high-readiness task force will be comprised of maritime, land, and air elements organized under a single integrated command structure. It will be ready to deploy within 10 days' notice and will provide an immediate CF presence to work with security partners to stabilize a situation or facilitate the deployment of larger, follow-on forces should circumstances warrant;
*Mission-Specific Task Forces (MSTFs) task-tailored to meet mission-specific requirements drawing upon any CF capability and could be deployed as a follow-on force to the SCTF or as stand-alone contribution. The MSTF will also be capable of lead-nation status in multinational peace support operations for limited periods; and
*the
Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART). An enhanced DART, or its component parts, will continue to provide humanitarian support and disaster relief to overseas missions, as directed.
CEFCOM will help ensure the Canadian Forces are more:
*relevant in the new international security environment, by providing a force better suited to adapt its capabilities and force structure to deal with threats that arise from the kind of instability found in failed and failing states around the world;
*responsive, by enhancing their ability to act quickly in the event of international crises. The CF will arrive on the scene faster, move more effectively within theatre, and increase it's capability to sustain deployments; and
*effective, by providing the ability to deploy the right mix of forces â€" maritime, land, air and special operations forces â€" to the right place at the right time, in order to produce the desired result.
The Commander of CEFCOM is Lieutenant-General Michel Gauthier. Reporting directly to the CDS, he is responsible for the conduct of all international operations â€" humanitarian, peace support and combat â€" and has the necessary authorities to perform these responsibilities.
This command is responsible for special forces units. It includes Joint Task Force 2 (
JTF2), the newly-formed Canadian Special Operations Regiment (CSOR), the Joint Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defence (JNBCD) Company, and a special operations aviation unit to be based on 427 Tactical Helicopter Squadron at
CFB Petawawa. The force is headed by
Colonel David Barr.
The CF reserve force comprises the Primary and Supplementary Reserves, the Canadian Rangers and the Cadet Instructor Cadre and is represented, though not commanded, at the national level by the Chief of Reserves and Cadets (a
Major General or
Rear Admiral).
Primary Reserve |
Reserve infantrymen train in urban operations circa 2004. Reserve training focuses on real world situations and the needs of the Regular Force who rely on the Reserves for augmentation on operational deployments. |
The primary reserve comprises citizen soldiers, sailors, and aircrew who train and are posted to CF operations or duties on a casual or on-going basis. Each reserve force is operationally and administratively responsible to its corresponding environmental command. Reservists number approximately 23,000 (all ranks, all services). The CF maintains a "total force" policy as outlined in the 1994 Defence
White Paper, where reservists are (in theory) trained to the level of and interchangeable with their regular force counterparts. It would be difficult to overstate the importance of the reserves to sustaining CF operations, particularly following the defence budget cuts and increased operational tempo of the 1990s.
Naval ReserveThe Naval Reserve (NAVRES) has divisions (shore-based training locations known as NRDs) located in 24 cities across the country. Full-time training is conducted year-round with regular-force counterparts at the three Fleet Schools and personnel frequently deploy on regular-force missions to supplement ships' crews. The Naval Reserve supplies all personnel (except three regular force personnel - two Electricians and one Naval Electronics Technician) for the 12
Kingston-class Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels (MCDVs), which are used for
patrol,
minesweeping and bottom-inspection operations. The Naval Reserve has a funded manning level of 4,000, though it currently opts to retain only 3,400 and use the excess money to train individuals to a relatively high standard.
Air ReserveThe Air Reserve is organized into
flights or
squadrons, integrated into "total force"
Wings, at locations across the country where personnel conduct training and support Wing operations. Units are specialized in various areas of surveillance, engineering, and airfield construction. Personnel also conduct further training at AIRCOM bases and can deploy with regular force AIRCOM crews around the world in support of CF missions. Unlike the Naval and Land Force Reserves, the Air Reserve is composed principally of former members of the regular force, though this does not reflect any official policy.
Army ReserveThe reserve element of Land Force Command is known as the Army Reserve, and is often referred to by its former name, the
Militia. It is organized into under-strength
brigades (for purposes of administration) along geographic lines. The Army Reserve is very active and has participated heavily in all Canadian army deployments in the last decade, in some cases contributing as much as 40 per cent of each deployment in either individual augmentation, as well as occasional formed sub-units (
companies).
Reserve regiments have the theoretical administrative capacity to support an entire
battalion, but typically only having the deployable manpower of one or two
platoons. They are perpetuated as such for the timely absorption of
recruits during times of
war. Current strength is approximately 15,000, and
DND committed to an increase to 18,500 in
2000.
Communication ReserveThe Communication Reserve is the primary reserve element responsible to the regular forces of the now defunct Canadian Forces Communication Command (now DND's Information Management Group). Communication reserve units are organized according to geographical region into Communication Groups (similar to the Army brigades). These Groups are divided into Communication Regiments (battalions), Squadrons (companies), and Troops (platoons), located in urban centres across the country. "Comms" reservists are involved in radio communications, data transmission, and installation and maintenance of tactical cable networks. The website for the Communication Reserve is
here .
Health Services ReserveThe 1500-strong Health Services Reserve provides essential health services in the Canadian Forces. Health services reservists serve the Canadian Forces in a wide range of health care professions, including
medicine,
nursing and
social work. Reserve paramedical personnel who are not civilian trained and employed are trained, as a minimum, to the level of
emergency medical responder (EMR).
Supplementary reserveThe supplementary reserve is part of the CF reserve and comprises a voluntary call-up list for former CF regular- and reserve-force personnel who can be considered for reactivation in the event of a national emergency.
The Canadian RangersThe
Canadian Rangers are part of the CF reserve, provide surveillance and patrol services in Canada's
Arctic and other remote areas, and are an essential component to Canada's exercise of
sovereignty over its territory.
Cadet Instructors CadreCadet Instructors Cadre (CIC) personnel are commissioned officers who are instructors in the various
Royal Canadian Sea Cadets,
Royal Canadian Army Cadets and
Royal Canadian Air Cadets corps across the country.
As of
April 2006, Canadian Forces are in operations throughout the world, as part of Canada's obligations to
NATO and the
United Nations, as well as in support of its international allies.
Current deployments are:
*
Central Asia 2001-present2300 troops in
AfghanistanCanadian contributions to
Operation Enduring Freedom and the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan
*
Balkans 1990s-present~100 troops Part of
NATO force in
BosniaAs well as these deployments, small detachments of Canadian military are based in different countries for assistance and logistical work.
Defence is an exclusive federal jurisdiction: defence spending in
fiscal year 2004-5 was approximately CAN$14 billion.[
8] However, in the
2005 federal budget, the Liberal government allocated an additional CAN$12.8 billion over five years to the armed forces, and committed to increasing troop levels by an additional 5,000 regular and 3,000 reserve personnel over the same period.[
9]
The Conservative government in their 2006 budget promised to keep the Liberal's proposed defense budget along with an additional CAN$5.3 billion over five years. With this money, the Conservative government intends to add 13,000 new full-time troops and 10,000 new reserve troops to the Forces, along with a set of three indigenous military icebreakers for use in the northern waters of Canada.
In late June 2006, Canadian Defense Minister Gordon O' Connor made a series of announcements about the "Canada First" Defence Procurement program.[
10] This plan allocated $17.1 billion from the budget for the purchase of new trucks, transport aircraft, helicopters and
joint support ships, in order to make the Canadian Forces more mobile and deployable.[
11]
The Canadian Forces have a number of active installations across the country with some being branch-specific. There are also a number of facilities which have closed in various defence cutbacks since the
1970s.
Army
*
CFB Edmonton,
Alberta*
CFB Gagetown,
New Brunswick*
CFB Kingston,
Ontario*
CFB Montreal,
Quebec*
CFB Petawawa, Ontario
*
CFB Shilo,
Manitoba*
CFB Suffield, Alberta
*
CFB Valcartier, Quebec
*
CFB Wainwright, Alberta
*
LFCATC Meaford, Ontario
Navy
*
CFB Esquimalt,
British Columbia*
CFB Halifax,
Nova Scotia*
CFS St. John's,
Newfoundland*
CFMETR, Nanoose Bay,
British Columbia*
NRS Aldergrove,
British ColumbiaAir Force
*
CFB Bagotville (3 Wing), Quebec
*
CFB Comox (19 Wing), British Columbia
*
CFB Cold Lake (4 Wing), Alberta
*
CFB Gander (9 Wing),
Newfoundland*
CFB Goose Bay (5 Wing),
Labrador*
CFB Greenwood (14 Wing), Nova Scotia
*
CFB Moose Jaw (15 Wing),
Saskatchewan*
CFB North Bay (22 Wing), Ontario
*
CFB Shearwater (12 Wing), Nova Scotia
*
CFB Trenton (8 Wing), Ontario
*
CFB Winnipeg (17 Wing), Manitoba
Air Command and CF Northern Area also maintain a chain of Forward Operating Locations at various points across northern Canada, capable of supporting fighter operations. Elements of CF-18 squadrons periodically deploy to these FOLs for short training exercises or Arctic sovereignty patrols.
All services
*
NDHQ Ottawa, Ontario
*
Camp Mirage,
Dubai,
United Arab Emirates*
CFS Alert,
Nunavut*
CFS Leitrim, Ontario
*
CFB Borden, Ontario
*
CFNA HQ Whitehorse,
Yukon Territory*
CFNA HQ Yellowknife,
Northwest TerritoriesAlthough each element (land, sea, and air) wears distinctive uniforms, the CF as a whole has generally been reduced to four orders of dress: No. 1 Ceremonial Dress, No. 2 Mess Dress, No. 3 Service Dress, and No. 5 Operational Dress. No. 4 Base Dress (Garrison Dress in the Army) was eliminated to reduce the number of uniforms members had to ship or pack when going on postings or taskings; either Operational Dress or Service Dress is substituted as appropriate to the situation. No.2 Mess dress is generally not paid for through public funds. Generally speaking, Operational Dress is now the daily duty uniform across the CF unless Service Dress is prescribed (such as at National Defence Headquarters, on parades, at public events, etc); for occasions of greater formality or dignity, Service Dress can be modified to suit the occasion. Also, some units have a regimental dress for very specific ocassions, such as the scarlet uniforms of the Royal Military College.
Service Dress
For all elements, Service Dress consists of a
Distinct Environmental Uniform (DEU) Jacket with rank insignia, national identifier, ribbons of medals, decorations and orders (with full medals worn when specified), metallic buttons (silver-coloured, brass-coloured, or black for Land element Rifle regiments), regimental or branch collar insignia (land and sea elements only), and trade insignia. Uniform trousers with belt (or kilt/trews and associated accoutrements); collared shirt and tie; ankle boots or shoes; and appropriate headgear with branch or regimental cap badge. Environmental distinctions are as follows for the three elements:
*
Land. Rifle-green DEU Jacket, trousers (or kilt/trews per regimental custom), beret (except as noted below: see
Beret), CF green tie (or regimental pattern), belt, and slip-ons. Linden green collared shirt with rank pins and slip-ons.
*
Air. Postman blue tunic, trousers, wedge cap or beret (universal), and slip-ons. Black necktie and belt. Light blue shirt.
*
Sea. Black ("navy blue") tunic, trousers, tie, belt, and slip-ons. White-topped service cap (universal). White shirt.
Note: There is also a white naval uniform, colloquially called an "ice cream suit", which consists of a white tunic with stand-up collar, white trousers, and white shoes. This uniform is optional for summer wear and must be purchased at the member's expense.
*
Rank Insignia is worn on the upper arms of the tunic for all ranks up to Sgt/PO2; on the forearms for all ranks from WO/PO1 to CWO/CPO1; and on the cuffs of all officers. Rank insignia is also worn on all slip-ons worn by Navy and Air Force personnel, but only by Army officers; Army NCMs wear miniature metal rank insignia on the shirt collar and plain epaulets.
*
Undress ribbons of orders, medals and decorations are worn over the left breast pocket of the tunic;
qualification badges (such as a paratrooper's "wings" or submariner's "dolphins") are worn above the top row of ribbons.
Command badges (worn by Army personnel, or by non-Army personnel in Army units or formations as ordered) are worn centred on the pleat of the right breast pocket.
*
Collar badges. Army personnel also wear collar badges (usually a miniature regimental or branch device but sometimes a separate pattern, depending on unit) on the lapels of the tunic. These badges are known colloquially as "collar dogs".
*
Shoulder badges. Brass regimental or branch shoulder titles are worn on the shoulder straps of the DEU/ceremonial dress. By regulation, only numerals and letters may be worn on these titles, the only exception being the
Calgary Highlanders and
Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's) who wear a special badge in the shape of an oak leaf, as a commemorative of the Battle of Kitcheners' Wood (22 April 1915).
*The
National Identifier is the word "CANADA" in an arc, in gold thread on the environmental background, worn on the upper sleeve near the shoulder seam. This is universal, except for Air Force NCMs, whose device also includes a gold eagle in flight. Slip-ons bear the title "CANADA", except for the Army, which may wear approved regimental or branch titles.
For less formal occasions, or when dictated by weather or other concerns, the uniform can be modified as follows:
* removal of tunic, substitution of short-sleeve shirt (same colour), worn open-necked, with ribbons and qualification wings over the left breast pocket and name tag over right breast pocket
* replacement of tunic with V-neck sweater (same colour as tunic) with shoulder straps; slip-ons as per shirt; short- or long- sleeved shirt (open-necked or with tie); shirt otherwise as normal
There also exists Ceremonial Dress (e.g., the scarlet tunics and bearskin caps of the Canadian Grenadier Guards), worn on formal and solemn parades and ceremonies, such as change of command parades, remembrance ceremonies, royal ceremonies, etc.; and Mess Dress, or Mess Kit (e.g. dinner jackets, waistcoats or cummerbunds, box spurs, etc), for formal or ceremonial dinners (such as mess dinners). These uniforms generally conform to the traditions of a particular regiment or branch; they are not universally worn, however, as they are generally not provided at public expense. For these occasions, some minor additions or modifications are made to the Service Dress uniform:
*
Ceremonial Dress. Replace undress ribbons with full medals. Add white web belts, gloves, bayonet frogs and rifle slings, pistol holsters, etc (for NCMs) or black
Sam Browne belts with swords and scabbards (for officers).
*
Mess Dress. Replace undress ribbons with full medals. Replace shirt and tie with white dress shirt and black bow tie (males) or an approved Mess Dress blouse with gold buttons (females).
Operational Dress
Army and Air Force. For daily wear in the Army and Air Force, this is the Temperate Woodland (TW) Canadian Disruptive Pattern (
CADPAT) uniform. It consists of a shirt, trousers, combat boots, beret (see below), and olive-drab (army) or dark blue (air force) crew-neck T-shirt. The uniform is well-fitted but comfortably loose, with numerous and voluminous pockets, and drawstrings to adjust the fit. The shirt is worn outside the trousers, and the trouser cuffs are bloused over the boots. The shirt has an epaulet for a slip-on in the centre of the chest; this slip-on bears the rank of the bearer and an appropriate national, branch, or regimental title embroidered on it. The name tag is attached via
Velcro fasteners, and bears the member's name, and environmental symbol (crossed swords for Army, eagle for Air Force). Embroidery thread for insignia etc is tan for Army and dark blue for the Air Force. The national identifier is the
Flag of Canada, in full colour for garrison wear or in olive drab for operational wear.
During exercises and operations in the field, blue T-shirts are replaced with olive drab, and berets are replaced with more suitable (and camouflaged) headgear such as field hats helmets, balaclavas, etc. CADPAT is also available in an Arid Region (AR) pattern, for use in environments such as Iraq or Afghanistan. As well, for winter or arctic operations, there are camouflaged (i.e. white) accoutrements and coverings for clothes and equipment.
All personnel including recruits are now receiving an initial issue of the CADPAT uniform, with the olive-drab uniform officially replaced Forces-wide.
Navy. The Naval version of Operational Dress is the Naval Combat Dress (NCD). It consists of a black zip-up jacket, trousers, and beret; medium blue shirt (optionally, a white crew-neck T-shirt may be worn underneath); and boots. Dress slip-ons are worn on the jacket and shirt. Black ball caps with ship's name and designation have been approved for shipboard wear.
Berets
The
beret is still the most widely worn headgear, and is worn with almost all orders of dress with the exception of the more formal orders of Naval and Air Force dress (i.e. Ceremonial, Mess, and Service Dress). The colour of the beret is determined by the wearer's environment, branch, or mission, as follows:
*All army â€" rifle green (except as noted below):*Armoured â€" black:*Airborne â€" maroon:*Military police â€" red:*Navy â€" black:*Air force â€" postman blue:*Search-and-rescue technicians â€" orange:*Special Operations Regiment â€" tan:*United Nations missions â€" U.N. blue
Soldiers in Highland, Scottish and Irish regiments generally wear alternate headdress, including the
glengarry,
balmoral,
tam o'shanter and caubeen instead of the beret. Approximately 1/3 of the Infantry Regiments in the Canadian Forces are designated Scottish, Highland or Irish, not because of the ethnic composition of Canada (though certainly reflecting the strong Scottish communities in Canada) as much as the belief, at the time the Regiments were raised, that units wearing the kilt and boasting pipe bands would be easier to recruit for.
*
Canadian Forces Air Command*
Canadian Forces Land Force Command*
Canadian Forces Maritime Command*
Canada*
Canadian military history*
Colonial Militia in Canada*
CF ranks and insignia*
List of Canadian military operations*
List of conflicts in Canada*
List of Canadian Military Infantry Weapons*
Royal Canadian Army Cadets*
Royal Canadian Sea Cadets*
Royal Canadian Air Cadets*
Joint Task Force Two*
Authorized marches of the Canadian Forces*
army.ca - unofficial website to which forum has passed
*
army.ca -
Army.ca a web forum and interactive wiki dealing with both current and historical issues related to the
Canadian Army.
*
ArmyNavyDeals.ca-
ArmyNavyDeals.ca a site dedicated to canadian militaria information and resource for valuable wiki based information and products related to the
Canadian Army.
*
Unification of the Canadian Forces*
Canadian Forces*
canadiansoldiers.com*
The Canadian War Museum*
CASR: DND 101 - A Visual Guide to Canada's Department of National Defence*
Canadian World War 2 Newspaper Archives - The Canadian Armed Forces*
Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels, used by Canada's naval reserve*
Ceremonial dress of the Canadian army, with specific attention to the Calgary Highlanders*
The Canadian Army Journal*
The Canadian Military Journal*
712 Communications Squadron*
Communication Reserve*
CanadianAlly (Website of the Canadian Embassy to the United States)
