Afstan: Is Army gear adequate?
A story in the Ottawa Citizen: Troops resort to buying their own gear: Military-issue boots, vests 'useless' in combat zone, soldiers say.
And the related Comments thread at Army.ca.
The response by Minister of National Defence O'Connor in an interview on CFRA, Ottawa.
And the related Comments thread at Army.ca.
And the related Comments thread at Army.ca.
The response by Minister of National Defence O'Connor in an interview on CFRA, Ottawa.
And the related Comments thread at Army.ca.
posted by Mark, Ottawa at 8:37 a.m.
1 Comments:
PUBLICATION: Edmonton Journal
DATE: 2006.03.22
EDITION: Final
SECTION: News
PAGE: B7
SOURCE: The Canadian Press
DATELINE: CFB SHILO, Man.
ILLUSTRATION: Photo: Journal Stock / (Gordon) O'Connor
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Defence minister willing to hear complaints
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CFB SHILO, Man. - The federal government is open to any complaints from Canadian soldiers stationed in Afghanistan about their equipment and living conditions, says Defence Minister Gordon O'Connor.
"I'm willing to listen," O'Connor said Tuesday during a tour of the 1 Royal Canadian Horse Artillery building at CFB Shilo near Brandon, Man.
More than a dozen soldiers on operations north of Kandahar recently went public with complaints that uniforms and equipment issued by the military aren't comfortable, strong enough or safe enough for their current mission.
While their actual uniforms are all military-issue, the soldiers said they spent hundreds -- and in some cases thousands -- of dollars of their own money on everything from desert boots to ammunition vests before deployment to Afghanistan.
"The stuff the army issues is useless," said a non-commissioned officer with the 1st Battalion Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, who asked that his name not be published.
Army-issued tactical vests, designed to carry ammunition, grenades, bayonets and other supplies, are also inadequate, soldiers said.
O'Connor, who is a former soldier himself, questioned some of the statements made by the soldiers.
"In one case, one of the soldiers said he wanted a vest that could carry 10 (magazines of rifle ammunition)," the minister said. Vests supplied by the army only carry four magazines.
"That makes it sound like he has to be prepared for a constant firefight. That soldier needs to explain what he needs it for."
O'Connor added that military staff are investigating to see if the complaints are valid.
The minister also addressed complaints by Canada's combat troops, also known as the "battle group," regarding three giant white tents they're housed in.
The troops said the tents offer no privacy and leak when it rains. Instead of concrete floors such as those in housing for non-fighting military personnel stationed in Afghanistan, the ground inside the tents is gravel and dirt. The tents are also filled with rows of small bunk beds which many soldiers said they can't fit into.
"This is a temporary measure,"
O'Connor said. "The next (troop) rotation will have more permanent housing."
But the new accommodations aren't likely to be ready until the summer when the 1st Battalion goes home after its six-month tour.
The minister's visit to Shilo was part of a two-day tour of Canadian military bases.
O'Connor is scheduled to visit Edmonton Garrison in Alberta today.
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