Wow, it’s good I came back here. I meant no offense by saying “once again … etc”. I used that expression because I mentioned another example of Canada helping the US. (the hostage crisis). Maybe, I should have said “as always”. (but I thought my intent was pretty clear). And if that’s not enough, wasn’t the last sentence in my posting an indication of my favorable¹ opinion of Canada ?
And geez as if I haven’t been misunderstood enough, Mama Tiger, how did my posting make you think of the song “Battle of New Orleans”? I didn’t quote any lines from it. (then again, I only know the Johnny Horton rendition and maybe, unbeknownst to me, I inadvertently quoted the “Nitty Gritty Dirt Band”).
Anyway, my thanks go to the Great White North.
¹ Please, I do not want any responses such as “Wolf, you only have a favorable opinion? Why, isn’t it highly favorable?”
I think that was William Jennings Bryan when he was Secretary of State.
Thank you, Canada. Memphis is over 300 miles from New Orleans, and we’ve got over 10,000 refugees in town, with more projected to arrive and some large number expected to stay here. I can’t imagine what the scene is like down there; here’s an account from one Memphian who just got back. Help from our northern neighbors is very much appreciated.
Johnny, the usual ratio of fly-time:maintenance given in news articles about the Canadian Armed Forces Sea Kings is 1 hour of fly time to 30 hours of maintenance. Is that a normal ratio?
In addition, there have been a series of accidents with Sea Kings in Canada. For example, a couple of years ago the military decided to fly one from somewhere in Western Canada to somewhere in eastern Canada. If I remember correctly, the flight took close to a month, and there were more forced landings due to malfunctions than planned landings. It spent several days at a base in Manitoba, waiting for parts. Overall it was on the ground more than it was in the air.
The other recent episode that sticks out in my mind was about a year ago. The CAF were sending a frigate over to join the patrols in the Persian Gulf that Canada has been maintaining since 9/11, as part of the Canadian operations in Afghanistan. The frigate had a landing pad for Sea Kings and having a helicopter that could patrol the waters and return to the ship was a major part of the operation’s planning.
Before the ship ever pulled out of Halifax, the Sea King assigned to it crash-landed on the heli-pad, damaging both the Sea King and the ship. Deployment was delayed to fix the ship, and it eventually sailed without a copter, drastically reducing the ship’s effectiveness in patrolling its assigned area.
One standard joke is that the CAF no longer classifies Sea Kings as helicopters. Now, they’re considered an assemblage of parts flying in close formation.
Sea Kings aside, I’m sure the four ships will come in handy, and I’m very pleased that our government is sending them to help our good neighbours.
We have three coasts, you know, people. Why the heck wouldn’t we have a navy? (Oh, and ask the Spanish about our navy/coast guard - it’ll be interesting to hear all that Spanish swearing. )
As for the political boondoggles regarding Canada’s Armed Forces, I’m a freakin’ pacifist and I completely support having a properly funded and supplied Armed Forces. Good grief, you politicians. Think about something other than getting re-elected for once, would you?
Rand Mcnally
Damned right !!! The Johnny Horton rendition is the definitive rendition. Anything else is just a pretender to the throne, a false god, (insert appropriate cliché here).
I’m serious. Even if the Sea King is a rattletrap, I’ll take one if Canada wants to donate to Help The Helicopter-less Pilot Fund, which I am herewith declaring.
‘Don’t let your Sea Kings fall out of the sky! Donate them to a loving home!’
Are these the same Sea Kings as used by the RAF? Because as far as I know these ones have no such reputation for problems, nor is any planning to replace them.
that’s about the time this controversy started here - the Tory government of Mulroney announced in the early 90s that they were going to buy new copters to replace the Sea Kings; the Libs defeated them in the 1993 general election; the Libs announced that they were rescinding the contract and would get some other copter, less expensive.
But a new contract has been signed. Delivery is to commence in ‘08, I believe. Bloody waste of money it’s been; should never have cancelled the Tories’ purchase.
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