Op IMPACT: CAF in the Iraq & Syria crisis

[George Wallace]

    2. We should accept zero refugees from the region. We should rarely, and only in the most dire of circumstances, accept any refugees from  anywhere. We should help care for refugees - maybe another $100 Million - in or every near their homelands but bringing
        refugees to Canada is almost always a mistake. A refugee is, by definition, a person who needs temporary refuge because (s)he and her/his family have fled their homes in fear for life and limb. Settling them, permanently, in Canada is not the right
        thing to do - it often makes matters worse for them.

I fully agree.  Beside the fact that they are not looking for a change of cultural values in escaping the violence in their homelands, we have not got the resources to properly screen them if we did bring them here.  As in the past, they could have health issues, criminal associations, or perhaps foreign intelligence affiliations.  We have no idea of whom they may be.  Just opening our doors for "feel good" reasons is not reason enough to accept anyone.

 

[Edward Campbell]

Let me be clear: the overwhelming majority of refugees who settle in Canada are honest, hard working and damned grateful to be here. They work hard, obey our laws and try their best ... it is the refugee system that is broken, the refugees, themselves, are, mostly, decent, honest people who deserve our help. We need to help in better, more effective and, yes, more generous ways, but we need to respond "over there" not by bringing the refugees here. Our aim should be to protect refugees and return them to their homes when we have helped (maybe militarily) to remove the forces that made them seek refuge elsewhere.

 

[George Wallace]

Let me be clear: the overwhelming majority of refugees who settle in Canada are honest, hard working and damned grateful to be here. They work hard, obey our laws and try their best ... it is the refugee system that is broken, the refugees, themselves, are, mostly, decent, honest people who deserve our help. We need to help in better, more effective and, yes, more generous ways, but we need to respond "over there" not by bringing the refugees here. Our aim should be to protect refugees and return them to their homes when we have helped (maybe militarily) to remove the forces that made them seek refuge elsewhere.

Agreed.  Just bringing them here, just for the sake of helping them, and introducing them to a completely foreign culture is much like the resettlement of Inuit communities to new locations in our not to distant past, perhaps even worse.  They may not actually want to come here.

 

[Kirkhill]

I think the net effect would be more "Lebanese-Canadians" and "Hong Kong Canadians".  Citizens of a foreign land holding a Canadian passport and expecting to be bailed out by their "Insurer" when things go wrong.

 

[CougarKing]

And the CF18 "six-pack" arrives in Kuwait ahead of their planned strikes:

CBC

CF-18s arrive in Kuwait for anti-ISIS mission
By Murray Brewster, The Canadian Press Posted: Oct 29, 2014 2:27 PM ET

Canadian warplanes have taken up position in Kuwait, a country straining in its own way to hold back the tide of Islamic extremism from its borders.

The CF-18 jet fighters and CP-140 Aurora surveillance planes are expected to join a U.S.-led coalition's bombing campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, also known as ISIS or ISIL, within days.

(...SNIPPED)

 

[Eye In The Sky]

Nice shot of '104 sitting in the 40s during PFIs before departing last Friday night.  Taken from the RCAF FB page.

 

[dimsum]

Is it just me or does the shadow (?) look like a happy face?

 

[medicineman]

Is it just me or does the shadow (?) look like a happy face?

Does look like a happy plane  :nod:.

MM

 

[Eye In The Sky]

Sorry to intrude on your PostAthon  ;D

Article Link

Canada launches first air strikes against ISIS: CF-18 fighter jets drop laser-guided bombs on targets in Iraq

Canadian fighter jets dropped bombs over Iraq late Sunday night, Iraqi time, Defense Minister Rob Nicholson announced in a statement from Ottawa.

“Today, Canada’s CF-18s conducted their first combat strike since joining the fight against [ISIS] on Oct. 30. Co-ordinated with our coalition partners, two CF-18s attacked [ISIS] targets with GBU12 500-pound laser-guided bombs in the vicinity of Fallujah, Iraq,” Nicholson said

“The approximately four-hour mission included air-to-air refueling from Canada’s Polaris aircraft. All aircraft returned safely to their base.”


Canadian Forces Combat Camera

Canadian Forces Combat CameraA Canadian Armed Forces flight crew member services the CP-140M Aurora Long Range Patrol aircraft as they arrive in Kuwait in support of Operation IMPACT on October 29, 2014. .

Nicholson said the assessment of damage was continuing.

It was the middle of the night in Kuwait, where the Canadian warplanes are based, and nobody connected with Task Force Iraq was available to comment.

Ottawa received word of the attack at about noon Ottawa time (or around 8 p.m. in Iraq).

First word of the successful sortie came in a statement from the minister shortly after 6 p.m. ET.

Few other details were released about the airstrike, which was the first use of bombs by CF-18 Hornets since the war to oust Muammar Gaddafi.

“We are all proud about the first strike,” an officer in Ottawa familiar with the operation said.

“It’s all good news, but we cannot possibly release information because it has to all come out at once at a tech brief where all the information will be covered so that you have the whole picture.”

As of Sunday evening, that brief for journalists was scheduled to be given in Ottawa on Tuesday.

The announcement of the air strike on the fourth day of operations came after the chief spokesman for Task Force Iraq said that the mission had been going well since it started on Thursday, with the CP-140 M Aurora spy planes singled out for praise.
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Every time I see the words "spy plane", I laugh to myself.  Even the picture from the same article calls it a LRPA. 8)

Yup, its a spy plane that carries....sonar buoys.  :nod:

- mod edit to fix link -

 

[dimsum]

Maybe the reporter is paid by the word and the company was cutting costs? 

 

[The Bread Guy]

Every time I see the words "spy plane", I laugh to myself.  Even the picture from the same article calls it a LRPA. 8)

That's because they've cut/pasted the Info-machine's caption/wording. 

Yup, its a spy plane that carries....sonar buoys.  :nod:

To be fair to (in this case) a reporter who's trying to get it right, what does "Long Range Patrol Aircraft" mean to the average reader at a glance?  And the wide range of stuff the planes DO do (check here for one overview) is a little tough to sum up briefly for civilian audiences.  Another info-machine term - "reconnaissance capabilities" - gives only a slightly better idea of the plane's job.

Maybe you can "lease" out your army.ca handle to Postmedia News as a short, sweet & less out there than "spy plane" descriptor?  Or does someone else hold the copyright?  ;D

 

[George Wallace]

Maybe you can "lease" out your army.ca handle to Postmedia News as a short, sweet & less out there than "spy plane" descriptor?  Or does someone else hold the copyright?  ;D

;D

But the civies will only construe "Eye In The Sky" as "Spy In The Sky" and we are back to square one.

 

[The Bread Guy]

;D

But the civies will only construe "Eye In The Sky" as "Spy In The Sky" and we are back to square one.

Or even "Pie in the Sky"?  Or even confuse it with the "cameras tracking the downtown" programs, right?

 

[The Bread Guy]

Bumped with the latest details from the Info-machine ....

.... On 30 October 2014, all ATF-I aircraft commenced air operations over Iraqi airspace.
•Two CF-188 Hornets conducted their first mission over Iraq. During the six-hour mission flown to the west of Baghdad, no targets were engaged. Throughout the mission, the CF-188’s were supported by coalition surveillance and tanker aircraft.
•One CP-140 Aurora flew a six-hour intelligence gathering mission over northwestern Iraq. During its first mission, the aircraft supported intelligence gathering for the Canadian task force and coalition partners, which helps to develop a better understanding of the battle space.
•The CC-150T Polaris flew an approximately six-hour refueling mission. The Polaris is part of a pool of coalition aircraft with air refueling capabilities assigned to support coalition air assets. The first mission for the Polaris resulted in almost 50,000 pounds of fuel being delivered to coalition aircraft ....

A bit more from CENTCOM here.

 

[Eye In The Sky]

That's because they've cut/pasted the Info-machine's caption/wording. 
To be fair to (in this case) a reporter who's trying to get it right, what does "Long Range Patrol Aircraft" mean to the average reader at a glance?  And the wide range of stuff the planes DO do (check here for one overview) is a little tough to sum up briefly for civilian audiences.  Another info-machine term - "reconnaissance capabilities" - gives only a slightly better idea of the plane's job.

If they say "long range bomber" they'd know what that means.  I guess I never thought the word "patrol" would throw people off.  They must be confused by a police "patrol" going thru their neighborhoods.  ;D

I know, it's like the news article's that refer to LAVs as "tanks".  We know their not, but we still go  :facepalm: when they do it.

 

[Eye In The Sky]

Pie In The Sky...hmmmm.  Now that is a great idea.  Gotta talk to Flight Feeding and see about that.

 

[George Wallace]

Pie In The Sky...hmmmm.  Now that is a great idea.  Gotta talk to Flight Feeding and see about that.

Beware the flying cow pies.  >

 

[CougarKing]

Beware the flying cow pies.  >

Or Flying Pigs.

 

[Eye In The Sky]

Beware the flying cow pies.  >

I was hoping more for apple!

 

[The Bread Guy]

I know, it's like the news article's that refer to LAVs as "tanks".

Good comparison, actually.

Beware the flying cow pies.  >

Ah, khaki balmorals on a windy day - tried on 4 or 5 in Dundurn before I found mine  ;D