CAS in Afstan: Pity we don't have our own

Without CAS--from the US, UK and Netherlands--our troops job would probably be impossible.

Close air support, or CAS, doesn't sound nearly as deadly, nor as crucial, nor as rapid-reacting as it is. But allied warplanes wheeling above or laying down withering fire on Taliban fighters — sometimes only tens of metres from embattled Canadian troops — make a daily life-or-death difference in Afghanistan.

“Our guys sleep better at night when they hear those jets,” said Captain Tim Spears, the senior forward air controller for the Canadian battle group.

Just the sound of the warplanes, or even the drone of an unmanned aerial vehicle, can thwart an attack, sending Taliban fighters scurrying for cover. “They know the sound; they know we can see them and hurt them,” Capt. Spears said...

Bombings or missile strikes by NATO's combat aircraft in Afghanistan, mostly American but also British and Dutch, rarely make news, except when things go wrong...

What would one expect, given our media? Thank goodness for this story.

Without the warplanes, casualties would be far higher among allied ground troops and it would take far more of them to battle the Taliban...

British Harriers, Dutch F-16s, U.S. A-10 Thunderbolts and a variety of attack helicopters [including Dutch Apaches] provide a mix of always-available air support...

Canada is the only country with a large number of ground troops fighting in the south that hasn't deployed combat aircraft. Capt. Spears would like to see some CF-18s in the skies but knows the government has decided not to send any. Like the Royal Navy pilots, Capt Spears said nationality doesn't matter when it comes to providing close air support, especially when there are troops in contact.

Nevertheless, he said, “we are users, not providers” of close air support and “there are times when we, the Canadians, are not the priority” for British and Dutch and U.S. combat aircraft.