Canadian Air Force. Canadian Army Royal Canadian Air Force

ZVO_04_03

Colonel A. GORELOV

Canada is an active member of the NATO bloc. Its military-political leadership pays great attention to improving its armed forces (AF), increasing their combat power and increasing the combat readiness of all components. Unlike other Western countries, the Canadian Armed Forces are not divided into independent branches, that is, into ground forces, air force and navy. The National Air Force, as well as the Navy and Army of this country, as independent branches of the armed forces, ceased to exist on February 1, 1968. Currently, the basis of the Canadian Armed Forces is made up of five commands: three operational (Army, Air Force, Navy) and two functional (northern zone and training, recruitment and training). The first three of them, to a certain extent, perform the tasks of the armed forces, but do not have their own organs for logistics and other types of support, communications and training inherent in the latter. The functions of all these bodies in the interests of the armed forces as a whole are entrusted to the joint headquarters of national defense and to the two functional commands. Within the framework of such a unified structure of the Armed Forces, all units and units of the country's military aviation are consolidated into the Air Force Command, which was formed in September 1975.

Organizational structure. The Air Force has an important place among the above-mentioned commands of the country's armed forces. About $2 billion is allocated annually for the maintenance of this command. It consists of 19,600 people (of which 14,500 are military personnel, 2,500 are civilian personnel and 2,600 are reservists). The air force units and units are armed with more than 350 aircraft (of which 96 are combat aircraft).

The Air Force command is entrusted with the following tasks: air defense (air defense) of the most important military installations, administrative and industrial centers; aviation support for the ground forces and navy, covering them from the air; transfer of personnel and cargo by air in the interests of the armed forces as a whole; aviation support for search and rescue operations carried out by government agencies and departments throughout the country and in the adjacent waters of the Pacific, Atlantic and Arctic oceans, as well as independent implementation of such operations in their areas of responsibility.

Strategic planning for the use and development of the air force is carried out by the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, who is part of the National Defense Headquarters (Ottawa) and at the same time is an adviser to the Chief of Defense Staff and heads the air command.

Operational and tactical control of Air Force units and subunits is entrusted to the commander of the 1st Canadian Aviation Division (1 CAD - 1 Canadian Air Division), who also manages the activities of the Canadian sector of the NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense) system. The joint headquarters of the country's 1st Air Force Division and the Canadian sector of the NORAD system is located in a building built on the territory of the 17th Airlift Wing (Winnipeg Air Force Base). It consists of about 600 military personnel, reservists and civilian employees. Subordinate to him are 13 air wings stationed in Canada, as well as units ensuring the operation aviation technology. The headquarters of this unit plays a central role in the combat command and control system of the national air force and is responsible for control airspace over its territory and interacts with the joint air defense command of the North American continent. Its formation, which was completed in 1997, was carried out in the process of reorganizing the aviation command of the country's armed forces. The Air Operations Center is also part of the 1st Air Division headquarters and is responsible for 24/7 control of the day-to-day activities of the branch's units. It is equipped modern means communications and equipment necessary to manage the progress of tasks and analyze the results of their implementation.

Structurally, the Canadian Air Force includes four main components: fighter, tactical, military transport and naval aviation. The most significant in terms of armament and missions is the fighter component - the 3rd and 4th aviation wings (ac). The main airfields for the units included in them are Bagotville (Quebec) and Cold Lake (Alberta). In total, these wings are armed with about 110 combat (CF-18 tactical fighters, Fig. 1) and combat training aircraft, as well as helicopters (see table). Along with the air defense mission, which is solved within the framework of the NORAD system, the squadrons of this component are entrusted with direct air support and air cover of aircraft units, and, in addition, retraining and improving the combat training of combat aviation flight personnel.

Naval aviation units are consolidated into the 12th, 14th and 19th aviation wings, which are operationally subordinate to the naval command. The 12th Acre squadrons are armed with 29 CH-124 Sea King anti-submarine helicopters, and the 14th and 19th are armed with 16 SR-140 Aurora basic patrol aircraft. In addition, they include search and rescue service formations, as well as units that provide training for personnel and operation of aircraft. According to the Western press, naval aviation squadrons are assigned the following main tasks: search and destruction of enemy surface ships and submarines, patrolling coastal zone and territorial waters of the country, monitoring the surface situation and protecting national fishing areas, conducting search and rescue operations. The solution to the main issues, namely the search and destruction of enemy surface ships and submarines, is assigned to units equipped with the basic SR-140 Aurora patrol aircraft (see color insert).

The six tactical component squadrons are organized into 1st Airlift Wing and represent the Army Aviation units of the Canadian Armed Forces. They are entrusted with the following tasks: carrying out tactical transfers of troops and cargo in the interests of units and units of the command of the ground forces, their fire support, conducting aerial reconnaissance, transporting the sick and wounded.

The transport aviation component includes 8 and 17 acres. The squadrons of this component are designed to solve the following main tasks: transfer of troops and cargo to remote theaters of operations; in-flight refueling of combat aircraft; tactical transfers of personnel, weapons and military equipment; organizing search and rescue operations in the areas of responsibility of the Trenton and Winnipeg air bases; transportation of high-ranking officials.

The remaining air wings are intended to support the operation of the command and control system, airspace control, as well as to train personnel of their armed forces and train air force crews of other NATO countries.

CANADIAN AIR FORCE

(by the end of 2003)

Aerodrome network. There are more than 400 airfields with artificial runways in Canada. The most developed network of airfields is in the southern, southeastern and eastern parts of the country. More than 220 runways have a length of 1,200 m or more, including 110 of them over 1,800 m, and can be used for the basing and dispersal of modern combat aircraft. The operational capacity of airfields with a runway length of 1,800 m or more is approximately 2,500 aircraft. About 20 of them have runways longer than 3,000 m and, based on navigation equipment, are 1st class airfields.

The Canadian Armed Forces own 20 airfields, of which the largest are: Bagotville, Greenwood, Cold Lake, Comox, Namao, Moose Jaw, Summerside, St. Hubert, Trenton, Chatham, Portage, Churchill, Shearwater (Fig. 2). In addition, the Canadian Air Force, together with civil aviation operate 14 more airfields: the main ones are Val d'Or, Winnipeg, Gander, Goose Bay, North Bay, Stephenville, Edmonton.

More than 20 Canadian airfields are used or could be used by the US military to support the movement of troops and tactical aircraft from the mainland to Europe, the dispersal of strategic aircraft and the forward deployment of air defense aircraft. The main military and civil airfields in Canada are equipped with modern navigation and lighting equipment, allowing them to receive and release aircraft around the clock and in any weather conditions. If necessary, aircraft and helicopters of the Armed Forces of Canada and the United States can carry out flight missions using the largest airports in the country as operational airfields, where the necessary reserves of materiel have been created and there is equipment for their full operation.

The training of personnel for all branches of the national armed forces is the responsibility of the Training, Recruiting and Training Command. However, for units and subunits of the Air Force, ground specialists come from the educational institutions of this command, and the flight personnel are trained by the 15th aviation wing.

Persons who have the required level of general educational training and are medically fit for flight work are allowed to study flight skills. Candidate pilots undergo a medical examination and psychological testing at the flight crew selection center. Persons who successfully pass the tests are sent to an 11-week general arms training course. After completing the courses, they are sent to civilian flight schools, where they learn theoretical foundations future profession and undergo initial flight training on piston aircraft.

Upon completion of the initial training course, future pilots are sent to the 2nd Flight School, where for 10.5 months they master flights on the ST-114 Tutor jet training aircraft, including group flying, instrument flights, aircraft navigation and the basics of combat use airborne weapons in various conditions (average flight time per trainee 200 hours). School graduates receive documents confirming their qualification as a pilot and a “wings” badge. Then, depending on the needs of the Air Force and taking into account individual abilities, they are distributed to combat training units to undergo advanced flight training in a specific profile: fighter pilot, helicopter pilot or multi-engine aircraft pilot.

Fighter aviation pilots undergo this stage of training in 419 ubae on ST-155 Hawk aircraft. Their training course lasts 5.5 months and includes about 200 hours of ground training and 95 hours of flight training. Here they master the features of piloting a fighter, tactics and the basics of combat use of its on-board weapons, both against ground and air targets. They are then sent to the 410 UBAE to train for flights on CF-18 tactical fighters. The retraining program for aircraft of this type includes 161 hours of ground training, during which the following main disciplines are studied: instructions for flying a CF-18 fighter, APG-73 airborne radar, air-to-air weapons (airborne gun mount, AIM-UR 7 "Sparrow" and AIM-9 "Sidewinder"), air target interception tactics, close-in tactics air combat, instructions for the combat use of airborne weapons, the use of electronic warfare equipment.

The flight training program for retraining on the CF-18 provides for mastering piloting techniques and practicing all elements of combat use of a fighter in both simple and complex situations. meteorological conditions. For this purpose, 71.5 hours are allocated for each student: 43.8 hours for flights with an instructor on a two-seat CF-18B aircraft and 27.7 hours on a single-seat CF-18A fighter. During the training process, much attention is paid to preliminary testing of flight missions using a ground simulator.

Pilots of multi-engine aircraft, after completing the basic training course at the 2nd Flight School, continue their training in training squadrons of naval and transport aviation (404 and 426 ae, respectively), and on specific types of aircraft they improve their flight training in combat units of the Air Force.

Helicopter pilots, depending on their mission, undergo advanced flight training courses in 403 ubvae and 406 uch plvae. Improving the flight and tactical skills of helicopter crew members is carried out in combat units and units of the Air Force.

Combat training is organized in accordance with the plans of the command of the national armed forces, as well as the leadership of NATO and the North American Aerospace Defense Command of the NORAD system. It is carried out during daily combat training and various types of exercises. Units and subdivisions Canadian Air Force take an active part in many NATO operational activities.

Thus, the crews of combat aircraft of the 1st Canadian Aviation Division regularly participate in the unit’s exercises, including in Europe, in particular to strengthen the northern flank of the alliance, which are held in Norway. Crews of the Canadian Air Force fighter aircraft, part of the joint aerospace defense system of the North American continent, regularly practice their actions together with units and subunits of the US Air Force. Along with practicing tasks to intercept enemy aircraft and conduct air combat with them, they undergo training to destroy cruise missiles. To practice this element, they are given the opportunity to search for and simulate attacks on American air-launched missiles, test launches of which are regularly carried out by the US Air Force command over Canadian territory ( final destination missile flight is the Cold Lake Air Force Base test site). Airplanes and helicopters of naval aviation regularly train in solving tasks of searching for and destroying enemy submarines (both independently and in cooperation with naval forces). Helicopter units from the 1st Aviation Wing are practicing their actions in the interests of the ground forces command. Western military experts note that the crews of aircraft and helicopters of the Canadian Air Force are distinguished by a high level of training.

During NATO's combat operations against Yugoslavia in 1999, 18 Canadian Air Force CF-18 tactical fighters took part, which accounted for up to 10 percent. all combat sorties carried out by alliance aircraft. At the same time, foreign military experts noted a number of significant shortcomings when performing flight missions. In particular, more than 28 percent. (approximately 100 of 360) laser-guided bombs dropped from Canadian Air Force aircraft in Yugoslavia missed their targets, hitting civilian targets, resulting in civilian deaths.

Construction of the Air Force. As noted by foreign media, the military-political leadership of Canada pays constant attention to the development of the armed forces, and primarily the Air Force - the most mobile and effective component. In particular, large-scale measures are being taken to modernize the aircraft and helicopter fleet.

In particular, work to improve the CF-18 tactical fighters is being completed in accordance with the program (cost 726 million dollars) approved by the country's government in August 2000. This program involves equipping these fighters with APG-73 airborne radars, electronic warfare equipment, NAVSTAR CRNS receivers, new onboard computers, combined interrogators and responders of the “friend or foe” identification system, as well as an improved weapons control system. In addition, it is planned to carry out work to extend the service life of aircraft of this type from 2003 to 2010 (they were purchased from the American company Boeing in 1980). In addition, the onboard equipment of the SR-140 Aurora base patrol aircraft will be improved.

The implementation of these and a number of other modernization programs, as foreign experts believe, will make it possible, without a significant reduction in combat capabilities, by the end of 2003 to reduce the combat strength of the Canadian Air Force from 480 (there were 119 out of 134 obsolete ST-114 training aircraft in 2000 before the decommissioning of ) up to 280 aircraft. At the same time, the number of CF-18 tactical fighters, which form the basis of the Canadian Air Force combat aircraft fleet, is planned to be reduced from 122 to 80, and the number of CP-140 Aurora base patrol aircraft is planned to be reduced by five aircraft (16 will remain).

It is also planned to reduce the fleet of CH-146 Griffon helicopters from 99 to 75 and decommission seven military transport aircraft (MTC) SS-115. All 33 SS-130 Hercules aircraft (Fig. 3) are planned to be retained in combat strength, limiting the annual flight time of the fleet of these machines to 1,500 hours. As an option to replace machines of this type, the Canadian military department is considering the possibility of purchasing American strategic military-technical vehicles S-17 or European A-400M.

The North American Continental Air Defense Command is seen as the main means of ensuring reliable air defense of the United States and Canada, determining the combat readiness of fighter forces on duty and the order of combat patrols over the territories of both countries.

On September 11, 2001, American and Canadian soldiers from the NORAD command were forced to quickly adapt to repel the threat that came from aircraft already over US territory. In addition, as noted by foreign media, they turned out to be psychologically unprepared for actions directed against passenger aircraft that flew under the American flag and were used by terrorists as cruise missiles to destroy ground targets. Currently, US Air Force units stationed at 26 air bases have been transferred to the operational subordination of NORAD command. In the interests of this system, 14 fighters are in combat readiness in the continental United States, two in Alaska and two in Canada. The fighters were on alert for 15 minutes. In addition, American AWACS and control aircraft began to be used on an ongoing basis to monitor the air situation over the territory of the United States and Canada. Canadian CF-18 fighters also began periodically patrolling national airspace.

The NORAD command is considering the option of using high-altitude airships to conduct aerial reconnaissance along the coasts of the United States and Canada, as well as to increase the combat capabilities of the warning system for the approach of cruise missiles and other low-altitude targets.

According to Western experts, the NORAD system currently has an insufficient level of effectiveness in detecting aircraft approaching this continent at low altitude. Research conducted by specialists from the defense ministries of both countries has shown that the concept of using airships to eliminate this shortcoming is practically feasible in the near future, since the construction of such aircraft is well mastered by American firms. At the same time, serial production of airships that carry radar systems can be established in a short time, the use of which, according to the calculations of Western experts, will ensure more effective reconnaissance of air targets. In the USA, such R&D is carried out by the company STRATCOM International.

In order to improve the NORAD system, an experiment began in 2002 (will last five years), in which it is planned to use two airships. The research is planned to be carried out within the framework of the US Department of Defense program, designated ACTD (Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration). According to foreign experts, its cost will be 65 million dollars.

According to representatives of the American and Canadian military departments, each of the demonstration airships (filled with helium, length 152 m, maximum payload mass of about 2,040 kg, flight altitude up to 24,000 m) is expected to be equipped with an on-board radar, as well as radio communications equipment designed to provide interaction between the aircraft and the NORAD system. According to the calculations of Western experts, the radar installed on it will be able to detect low-altitude targets at a range of up to 740 km, and the on-board power system will allow it to generate autonomous power throughout the year. electric current for powering on-board equipment, the power consumption of which can reach 65 kW.

Flight testing of the devices being created is scheduled to begin in 2004. During them, it is expected, in particular, to consider the possibility of controlling such airships from one command post. To test the effectiveness of the combat use of these aircraft in the NORAD system, a number of exercises are planned.

In total, it is planned to build 15 airships (of which three are reserve) to support NORAD. The information obtained with their help can be used by other systems. As noted by Western media, interest in the ACTD program was expressed, in particular, by the drug enforcement agency, as well as the coast guard services of the United States and Canada.

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Plan:

Introduction

• 1 Structure
• 2 Base points
• 3 Combat composition
• 4 Equipment and weapons
• 5 Identification marks
  • 5.1 Evolution of identification marks
• 6 Rank insignia
  • 6.1 Generals and officers
  • 6.2 Sub-officers and soldiers
• 7 Gallery
Notes

Introduction

Canadian Air Force flag

Canadian Forces Air Force Command(English) Canadian Forces Air Command - AIRCOM ) - the air force component of the combined Canadian Armed Forces, formed on February 1, 1968 as a result of the merger of the three branches of the Canadian Armed Forces into a single Canadian Armed Forces. The Canadian Air Force is the successor to the Royal Canadian Air Force, which existed from 1924 until February 1, 1968. Until 1924, Canada's air defense was provided by Royal Air Force.

1. Structure

2. Base points

3. Combat composition

4. Equipment and weapons

Main aircraft (figures from the official page of the PIC):

5. Identification marks

5.1. Evolution of identification marks

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Foreword by scout and translator: This text, which I found on the Canadian website http://www.vintagewings.ca, is a literary hoax written on April 1, 2011 and telling about the use of Soviet-made fighters by the Royal Canadian Air Force. From a political point of view, the text, in the apt expression of a respected colleague vonzeppelin, is an absolute anreal (Canadians could purchase English Electric Lightning fighters in the UK or, by allowing wanderers, become more than just a project interceptors, and the USSR would not have sold the latest fighters to a NATO member country without serious political carrots on its part). I have indicated the most obvious technical errors as notes in the text itself. Alternatively, the text is very weak and its feasibility is highly unlikely. However, despite all these shortcomings, the text is quite interesting (although in a number of places (such as Gagarin’s words) the author wanted to hit him with something heavy) and deserves to be posted on the “Alternative History” website.

On October 31, 2002, far-right trash talker and two-time Republican presidential candidate Pat Buchanan was misled by the wild notion that Canada was a cesspool of anti-American “sentiment,” calling our country a Soviet Buzzard. One half of the country was in typical Canadian quiet rage, while the other half was amused by this statement in an elitist way. From that moment on, Bukinan received caustic nicknames from all news outlets, but in fact he was not the author of the words he expressed.

In fact, Buchanan was quoting his old boss, Richard Nixon, for whom he was a senior political adviser during the latter's tenure as president. However, it was not President Nixon who was so angry at Canada, but Vice President Nixon who said this in 1960 at the height of the Cold War. Although the Canadians were annoyed, I have to admit that... Bukinan was right. He firmly remembered the unpleasant period of the transpolar winter that had befallen American-Canadian relations earlier that decade. Bukinan was a journalism student at Columbia University at the time and was so outraged by the incident that he wrote his master's thesis in 1962 on the expanding trade between Canada and Cuba.

The political whirlpool that pitted Canada against the United States in 1960 and heated Canadian-American tensions to the limit lasted no more than one year, but it took almost ten years to cool down and return relations to normal. The American media called it different things:

“backstab in the backyard”, “wings of a flash”, “red hawks incident”

and most ominously

"Crisis: Canadian Invasion".

In Washington, among the members of Congress there were hotheads who were ready to impose sanctions against Canada, and among the command of the US Air Force there were those who were ready to fight bone-to-bone with the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Strategic Air Commander General Curtis LeMay went even further by saying

“My solution to the problem would be to tell these frozen Canadian bastards frankly that they need to turn up their horns and stop the aggression, otherwise we will bomb them into the stone age.”

In the early fall of 1960, like a fierce Arctic front, news spread across America that the Royal Canadian Air Force had made a secret purchase of thirty modern Soviet MiG-21 fighters as a replacement for the production Avro Arrow interceptor. Americans from coast to coast were stunned and feared that communist influence would spread to the northern border and become rampant. Anti-Canadian rhetoric ran rampant across the United States, and ordinary Americans from Maine to Wisconsin began cutting down maple trees in protest. During one of the acts of revenge, three beavers were shot with a pistol on the lawn outside the Kentucky State Legislature (Frankfurt).

Most Americans and Canadians wondered what motivated the Canadian government and the Royal Canadian Air Force to so clearly here and now challenge the sleeping giant that was the United States of America. To understand the complexities and emotions surrounding the purchase of Russian fighter jets, we must go back to 1953 and see the beginning of the creation of the national dream aircraft called the Avro Arrow.

Was a delta-wing interceptor fighter designed and built by Avro Aircraft Limited (Canada) in Malton, Prov. Ontario, Canada, as the culmination of design studies begun in 1953. It was a bold, elegant and stunning post-war aircraft - an aircraft made so Canadian! Considered a technological and aerodynamic breakthrough, the CF-105 delivered on its promise of Mach 2.0 speeds at altitudes exceeding 50,000 feet (15,000 m) and would serve as the Royal Air Force's primary interceptor during the 1960s and beyond. Canada.

In 1958, shortly after the flight test program began, development of the Arrow, including its intended Orenda Iroquois engines, was abruptly and controversially stopped. Before the draft was considered, there were long and bitter political debates that still simmer in web forums and chat rooms today.

to most Canadians (except for the blind, capricious and revisionist), the Avro Arrow was a heart-achingly beautiful and stunningly futuristic symbol of the nation - in a concentrated way latest technologies. Canadians, who felt the thrill of being at the very forefront of scientific and technological progress, were forced to take a sharp step back on the day the Arrow program ended. Although Canada's aerospace industry is one of the most successful in the world today, many Canadians who remember Black Friday still feel a sense of bitterness.

The controversy generated by the cancellation of the program and the subsequent barbaric destruction of aircraft in production remains a topic of discussion among historians, political observers, industry experts and ordinary people who have gone crazy with Canadian jingoism. The cancellation of the Arrow program effectively put Avro out of business, scattering its engineering and manufacturing workforce across North America. The incident was so traumatic that many are still mourning the loss of Arrow.

Avro employees and support staff alike experienced the catastrophic collapse of their dreams and the instantaneous evaporation of their livelihoods, and their pain of failure and calls for punishment of those responsible for this decision were shared equally by a number of senior officers and high-ranking officials from the Ottawa supply chain department of the ministry. National Defense (Department of National Defense's Directorate of Systems Procurement). It was here, on the creaking wooden floors of the Department of National Defense's Hunter Building located on O'Connor Street, that the idea of ​​a Canadian all-weather long-range fighter was once put forward - interceptor capable of operating over the entire territory of Canada. The people who worked on the fourth floor of control were known as “Hunter Boys” - veterans of World War II - pilots, navigators and reconnaissance pilots.

cutting up dream planes. Rumors about the impending closure of the Avro Arrow program circulated for several months before the final decision was made. However, many Canadians were shocked to hear the announcement. Within days, 14,500 Avro employees were out of work, as well as 15,000 additional workers from Avro-related subcontractors. Within two months after the cancellation of the project, all aircraft, engines and technological equipment were scrapped, and technical documentation- for destruction. The official reason for the destruction order by the Cabinet and the Joint Chiefs of Staff was the destruction of classified and “classified” materials used in the Arrow/Iroquois programs. This action was due to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police's fears of a Soviet mole infiltrating the Avro, which was later partially confirmed by Mitrokhin's archives. However, many middle and senior officials in the Department of National Defense supply chain management were convinced that the Canadian side was under intense American political pressure to cancel the project and subsequently sell Canada, which at that time had one of the largest air forces in the world, the latest F-104 fighters and F-101. Their disgust at this apparent interference in Canadian affairs led many to lobby for the acquisition of non-American fighters: from Western Europe and even from the Eastern Bloc

The Hunters treated the Arrow program like a parent treats a child, and when the program was cancelled, for the Hunters it was comparable to the death of Charles Lindbergh Jr. for his family: the impact was devastating, final and burying before the realization of what had happened. As in the case of the Lindbergh child, the perpetrators tried to remove the blame from themselves and shift it onto others. Some believed that it was a personal decision of Prime Minister John George Diefenbaker, several people in his inner circle believed that the then Minister of National Defense George Pearkes was blackmailed by the East German Mata Hari and a courtesan named Gerda Munsinger ), but the “hunters” had their own culprit - the American military-industrial complex (this will become known after Eisenhower’s farewell speech).

The Americans were not afraid of the promised capabilities of the Arrow (in fact, they laughed at the reporter's proposal to buy a Canadian aircraft), since the United States had aircraft whose performance was equal to or even superior to that of the Canadian machine. The Americans wanted to acquire not so much Canadian technology as the Canadian military aviation market. In those years, Canada had one of the largest air forces in the world with dozens of air bases from Newfoundland to Vancouver Island, with hundreds of fighters and hundreds of other aircraft: both transport and general purpose. If Canada had started building its own aircraft to replace its aging Sabres, and if stubborn northern heads had gotten their head around the idea of ​​building aircraft of all types, then billions of dollars would have flowed into the Canadian economy in the 1950s and not a single coin would have found its way south of the border. .

How to piss off Canadians. This photo shows President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Vice President Richard Nixon allegedly reacting to a question from a Canadian journalist during Eisenhower's visit to Ottawa on July 21, 1958. His question: “Mr. President, could you comment on the fact that many Canadians now believe that in the Avro CF-105 Arrow they have the most advanced combat aircraft in the world and that the United States may consider purchasing a number of machines of this type to equip some of their units with them.” Their laughter could be heard throughout the residence of the Prime Minister of Canada, and many Canadians had it in their ears until 2011

The "hunters'" belief that the promised Arrows were eliminated by a collective decision and that the desecration of the beautiful white hulls of these aircraft could be carried out at the insistence of the malevolent corporate-political leadership entrenched in Washington, led them to seek revenge with such courage and force that would touch every American . The Hunters set in motion a plan to acquire fighters to replace the Arrow, not from the United States or Western Europe, but from a Warsaw Pact member country.

"So be it"

Air Commodore Frederick Roe (DFC), a holder of the Distinguished Flying Cross, aptly said when he met with the “hunters” in the dark Bytown Inn bar, located on O’Connor Street opposite the “hunting lodge”. These meetings became known as the “Labatt conspiracy.”

Within a matter of weeks, they set in motion a plan to recruit key members of the Soviet regime. Negotiations at the lowest, middle and highest levels were first attended by the highest ranks of the RCAF, and then joined by Soviet leaders. In June 1959, the procurement team sent a request to diplomats and party officials at the Soviet embassy in Sandy Hill.

In late August 1959, a large group of Canadian officials, including Air Commodore Roe, senior RCAF officials, test pilots, and aviation experts from the Paul Kissmann Institute, flew from RCAF Northstar to West Berlin. Then, maintaining secrecy, they crossed the checkpoint and arrived at the GDR air force base in Holzdorf, Schleswig-Holstein. At the air base, they received unprecedented access to the hitherto secret MiG-21F fighter (NATO code designation Fishbed-B) and a demonstration of the machine's capabilities by promising Soviet test pilot Yuri Gagarin [actually in August 1959: 1. Yuri Gagarin served for the second year in Luostari (Murmansk region) in the 769th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the 122nd Fighter Aviation Division of the Northern Fleet Air Force, armed with MiG-15bis aircraft; 2. The MiG-21 test pilot could have been Konstantin Kokkinaki; 3. The MiG-21F fighter was still undergoing flight tests under the control of M.Kh. Khalieva, V.V. Yatsuna, S.A. Mikoyan, V.G. Ivanova, B.C. Kotlova - byakin]. Although the E-4 - the progenitor of the MiG-21F - was first publicly demonstrated at the Soviet Aviation Day held in Tushino in July 1956, little was known about the fighter itself. The Canadians were concerned about the MiG's short range, but were very impressed with its Mach 2.0 top speed and time to reach the speed of sound. After demonstrating the capabilities of the machine, the delegation’s words were translated by a smiling Gagarin, who said

“The MiG-21 will cut through the sky over our Motherland like lightning. The MiG-21 will rush like a scalded dog along Nevsky Prospekt.”

In turn, the flight display led to negotiations at the highest level between the First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR Anastas Mikoyan, who, among other things, was also the brother of Artem Mikoyan, one of the greatest aircraft designers of the USSR, and the Prime Minister of Canada John George Diefenbaker. Although the meetings were secret in all respects, it was considered a good idea to keep everything in plain sight. That is why the meeting at such a high level took place on the first floor of the New Technologies pavilion of the New World Showcase, an exhibition held in November in West Berlin. Although Diefenbaker lacked Mikoyan's natural charm and simplicity, both were born far from the capitals in the countryside and quickly found common ground on a personal level. That day, in the vast Soviet Gallery of Progress and Household Joys, among four-hundred-pound (180 kg) 9-inch (23 cm) color televisions, steam lawn mowers, nuclear drying racks and tombstone-sized toasters, a deal was struck .

Prime Minister John Diefenbaker glares with withering anger at Russian photographer Doukhobor, who filmed his discussion with Anastas Mikoyan (left) and Sergei Volchenkov in the New Technologies Pavilion during the Neue Welt technology exhibition held in West Berlin in November 1959. Diefenbaker, nicknamed "Chief Dief" by Canadian jokers, was very cautious and tried to maintain a low profile during negotiations on the purchase of Eastern Bloc equipment - the Soviet MiG-21 fighters. Photographer “Nudi” Nudistavinka was beaten by KGB officers and his camera was confiscated, as these photographs would certainly have caused great concern in the United States in those years. The photographs were published more than thirty years after the collapse of the USSR. Photo by Peytor Nudistavink

Canada was to receive thirty brand new modern Soviet all-weather MiG-21 interceptors straight from the assembly line. In addition to aircraft, the USSR supplied spare parts, tools, fixtures and auxiliary equipment, and also provided technical assistance and training. It goes without saying that all this was done in great secrecy. This was the largest Soviet-Canadian arms deal since the supply of Canadian-made Hawker Hurricane XII fighters to Russia under Lend-Lease. It remains unknown what the Soviet side was supposed to receive for its aircraft, but in 2012 the “top secret” stamp on the documents relating to the deal will be removed, and the data will undoubtedly be made public. There were rumors that the Soviet leadership insisted on bases in the Yukon and Labrador, but they were never granted: the Canadians needed planes and revenge, not Soviet allies. The 441st Squadron was selected to implement the Redhawk Program due to the excellent flying skills and extensive experience of its pilots.

1 - the beaver, like the maple, is a symbol of Canada
2 - This deal is now widely known as the Redhawk Program.
3 - later this thesis will be completely proven wrong by Munzinger herself in her autobiography “My Life Under the Tories”
4 - Labatt - Canadian brewing company
5 - the alternative was written by April 1, 2011

Canadian aviation began its development with the first attempts to launch small paper airplanes. Having developed this type of flight, they began to launch equipped devices that were much heavier than air.

Airports in Canada

Located in Canada large number airports, the most famous of which are:

Vancouver International Airport is located on the island, 12 km from the center of Vancouver. It is the largest and busiest airport in the country.

Quebec City Jean Lesage International Airport is located just 11 km from Quebec City.

Toronto Pearson International Airport is the main international airport serving the city of Toronto and is located just 27 km away. It was named after the 14th Prime Minister of Canada, Lester B. Pearson.

Canada has also been developing and producing helicopters since 1978.

The first to see the world was the CL-227 Sentinel, an unmanned helicopter. The first flight took place on August 25, 1978. It was developed by the Canadian company Bombardier Services Corporation. The project began to be developed back in 1964, and the first device was created only in 1977. In our time, its development and modernization continues.

The CL-327 Guardian was released next. It was also unmanned and was a modernized version of the CL - 22. Deliveries to the United States began in 1998. Optical sensors were installed on the device.

Another helicopter developed by Canada was the Sikorsky CH-124 Sea King. It was twin-engine and deck-based, designed to combat submarines.

Canadian Air Force

The air force component of the combined Canadian Armed Forces was formed on February 1, 1968, by the merger of the three branches of the Canadian Armed Forces into the Canadian Air Force. Until 1924, Canada's air defense was provided by the Royal Air Force.

The Canadian Armed Forces are not divided into independent branches, namely the Air Force, the MAF and the Ground Forces. They are based on the commands: Mobile, Canadian Forces Europe, Training and Signals.

Canadian pilots

Canada is also famous for its pilots, who have become world famous.

Arthur Roy Brown, December 23, 1893 – March 9, 1944, was a Canadian aviator, captain, and ace of the First World War.

Robert Pichet, a Canadian military aviation pilot, became known to the whole world after August 24, 2001, when an unpleasant incident occurred. He and his comrade Dirk de Jager were able to land a plane in which both engines had failed, and thereby save the lives of all passengers.

Aviation incidents in Canada

There were also cases in Canada aviation accidents. One of them happened on August 20, 2011, a Boeing 737 aircraft was operating a cargo-passenger charter flight, as a result of which 12 people were killed and three were injured.

On September 2, 1998, a crash occurred near Halifax International Airport. All passengers on board died. The incident is considered the second deadliest air disaster in Canadian history.

Nowadays, Canada is a leading country in aviation. They train pilots on specially equipped T-33 and Challenger aircraft, and are engaged in search and rescue operations and cargo delivery. They do all this with the help of transport aircraft and search and rescue helicopters.