The good & bad about tanks
Perhaps I should say "the good and the bad writing about tanks" in this article.
First, the bad: tanks aren't "Canada's biggest guns in Afghanistan" as the title of the article suggests. This may sound like a niggling little point, but it's the sort of needlessly shoddy writing that drives me a bit batty - a simple inquiry or Googling would deal with this misconception. The biggest guns the CF operates in Kandahar are the M777 artillery pieces, at 155mm in barrel diameter.
Heavy, tracked armour is extremely useful in Afghanistan, but not just because of the main gun on the tanks. If you want to know how we employ these beasts, you should really read Maj Cadieu's article.
Second, the good: it's not actually any hard information in the article, but rather the promise of information to come...
It's always better hearing it directly from the experts themselves than to have a journalist - who's almost always forced to be a generalist by the media business - try to translate material he or she doesn't understand.
First, the bad: tanks aren't "Canada's biggest guns in Afghanistan" as the title of the article suggests. This may sound like a niggling little point, but it's the sort of needlessly shoddy writing that drives me a bit batty - a simple inquiry or Googling would deal with this misconception. The biggest guns the CF operates in Kandahar are the M777 artillery pieces, at 155mm in barrel diameter.
Heavy, tracked armour is extremely useful in Afghanistan, but not just because of the main gun on the tanks. If you want to know how we employ these beasts, you should really read Maj Cadieu's article.
Second, the good: it's not actually any hard information in the article, but rather the promise of information to come...
Three members of Lord Strathcona's Horse will write about their Afghanistan experience for the Edmonton Journal during their deployment through the spring and summer. Watch for stories every Monday on A2 from Trooper Cory Rogers, Sgt. Gregor Moon and Master Cpl. Shawn Alexander. Today, Maj. John Cochrane discusses the fear and a soldier's mindset as they set off for Kandahar Province.
To see the Leopard 1 C2 tank and hear Capt. Sandy Cooper talk about what the Edmonton Garrison's tank squadron brings to Afghanistan, go to edmontonjournal.com/videos.
It's always better hearing it directly from the experts themselves than to have a journalist - who's almost always forced to be a generalist by the media business - try to translate material he or she doesn't understand.
posted by Babbling Brooks at 5:00 p.m.
2 Comments:
That line about the biggest guns will not make the Gunner's mafia happy !!
Of course, the Infantry knows both Armour and the Artillery are Supporting Arms !!
More importantly, we have hot coffee.
Cheers
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