In February, Canadian Armed Forces reserve members learned how to survive in cold weather, conduct a raid, manage injuries and casualties, and take a dip in cold water while in training for Arctic warfare in Labrador.
The military operation, called Exercise Maroon Sojourn, brings together the Arctic Response Company Group, which includes people from across the Atlantic provinces, and six American military personnel.
The reserve forces are typically focused on sovereignty operations but there has been an increased push toward warfare training, says Col. Ray Dufour, commander of the 37 Canadian Brigade out of Moncton, N.B.
“We’re getting back into what we call kinetic operations, the use of weapons in order to deliver an effect,” said Dufour.
“The global situation across the world is deteriorating. For us, it is one of these things we’re training for in case there’s a requirement for the Canadian Armed Forces to deploy.”
Reservists are primarily dispatched to local operations, such as cleaning up after Hurricane Fiona, but they need to be prepared for more, Dufour said.
It’s not the first time they’ve done this type of cold weather operations for reserve forces, Dufour said, but there is more of an emphasis on it recently from the federal government.
The reserve members conducted a mock raid at Mosquito Range, on the 5 Wing Goose Bay Base. The exercise ended with two military personnel being mock casualties with other members practising providing medical attention.
“Everything is more complicated in cold weather environment,” Dufour said. “Communication is big, you also have transportation that’s bigger and also survival.
“Once you’re below –20 C, it becomes very, very easy to make small errors that’s going to have huge consequences.”
Battling Labrador’s soft snow, freezing temperatures and becoming used to snowshoes are some of the things the reserve members learn. The troops also plunged into Labrador’s freezing water to prepare for the possibility of being submerged in icy waters during actual operations. The reserve members also rely on local and Indigenous knowledge to learn how to manage the land.
“Indigenous people bring much more than just culture. They’re bringing a skill set and a way of communicating to the land,” Dufour said. “They have a wealth of experience and we ought to listen to what they’re recommending because it’s really survival skills.”
Master Cpl. Madalynn Allaby, a signal operator with the 37 brigade, said being in Labrador is also a way to learn effective communication in a challenging environment. Allaby works to make sure troops and commanders can communicate effectively with each other, regardless of what’s happening.
“Up here in the Arctic, communications are a little bit different,” Allaby said.
They typically use satellite communications but they face challenges with cloud cover and weather, Allaby said. High-frequency radios work better in the Arctic, she said.
Allaby said it’s a lot of troubleshooting but a nice place to do it in.
“I really love it up here. I think the weather is a little chilly, but it’s really beautiful and the scenery is beautiful and it’s very quiet and peaceful up here,” Allaby said.
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