Canadian Armed Forces members run as the sun sets during Operation IMPACT in Kuwait, on February 1, 2015.

A CF-18 Hornet aircraft sits on the tarmac waiting for its next mission during Operation IMPACT in Kuwait on February 1, 2015.

Search and Rescue Exercise MARJAID from Lookout on Vimeo.

Members from 2 Battailon, Royal 22e Régiment engage the enemy during training as part of Exercise RAFALE BLANCHE 2015 held in the training areas of CFB Valcartier in Courcelette, Quebec on January 22, 2015.

CDS, General Tom Lawson faces off against Brigadier-General, Dan Constable, Commander of Task Force-Iraq during a friendly ball hockey game as part of the Team Canada 2015 Tour on January 23, 2015. 

Corporal Amélie Tremblay from 35 Canadian Service Battalion (35 Cdn Svc Bn) participates in a winter warfare exercise in Valcartier, Quebec on January 24, 2015.

A crewmember of Her Majesty's Canadian Ship FREDERICTON conducts small arms training on the flight deck during Operation REASSURANCE on January 25, 2015.

The Chief of Defence Staff, General Tom Lawson tours the operations room on Her Majesty's Canadian Ship Fredericton in Sicily, Italy on January 24, 2015.

[caption id="attachment_9055" align="alignnone" width="300"] Dwayne Hill’s fleet of vessels includes: top row - HMCS Athabaskan, HMCS Barrie, USS Lake, USS MacDonough; middle row - USSR Kilo, USSR Alfa, German U-69, German U-873, German U-36, USS Shark, HMS Tally-Ho; front - HMCS Rainbow, CC-2, HMCS Windsor and HMCS Okanagan.[/caption]When the Royal Canadian Navy celebrated its submarine centenary in 2014, one submarine enthusiast offered up a very tangible lesson in Canada’s boat history.Remote control model builder Dwayne Hill has built from scratch 1/48 scale models of every class of submarine to enter Canada’s service.During 2014, Hill visited 15 schools near his Brossard, Quebec, home with his detailed recreations, and talked to students about Canada’s submarine history.“It was very well received,” he says. “In two cases, I was asked to stay to present to more classes throughout the day.”Not only are they perfect replicas of their full size predecessors, constructed from actual vessel plans right down to the tiniest details, the remote controlled models also do the same things the real boats did, such as dive, surface and fire torpedoes, albeit in much smaller bodies of water.Hill’s collection started 30 years ago with submarine USS Tang.He didn’t know it at the time, but Tang was the same class of vessel as HMCS Rainbow, which was originally an American submarine sold to Canada in 1968. When he discovered that in 2003, he made the necessary modifications, repainted it and Tang became Rainbow.Not surprisingly, it’s his favourite model, even though it was among the most difficult to build. It took three attempts to properly form the hull out of Styrofoam and fiberglass, and learn how to replicate various parts from drawings and photographs.“If I had the pick of the 19 that I have, Rainbow would be my choice. It’s a super nice boat. It runs very well, lasts a long time in the water. It operates nicely,” he says.After the success of his first build, Hill honed his skills as a model builder with the...

[caption id="attachment_9049" align="alignnone" width="300"] RAdm Bill Truelove gives opening remarks at the Enhanced Naval Boarding Party briefing .[/caption]RAdm Bill Truelove, Commander Maritime Forces Pacific (MARPAC), visited CFB Halifax on Jan. 16 to brief his Atlantic Fleet counterparts on the Enhanced Naval Boarding Party, and to attract potential trainees.“With today’s naval operations increasingly concerned with providing maritime security in the littoral environment, the need for an advanced, versatile force that can respond rapidly to threats such as pirates, drug smugglers or small, nimble, fast attack craft is as salient as ever,” he said during his briefing.The Enhanced Naval Boarding Party capability was recently implemented as a MARPAC force generation project.There is now an effort to establish a second team on the East Coast to support Atlantic Fleet operations.Though traditional naval boarding parties are capable of conducting basic obstructed boardings, the dynamic and evolving nature of RCN missions now calls for a new approach.These operations require a highly trained team such as the Enhanced Naval Boarding Party.Through extensive specialized training and careful selection, the Maritime Tactical Operators from this unit will eventually employ a spectrum of advanced tactics, such as hand-to-hand combat, improvised explosive device identification, and close quarters battle, as well as tactical shooting and tactical questioning.The installation of an Enhanced Naval Boarding Party team will not remove the need for established boarding parties.“All ships will continue their existing capability,” said LCdr Wil Lund, Enhanced Naval Boarding Party capability officer in charge.“When an enhanced team is deployed, then your alpha wave will become the bravo wave.”“It’s a career opportunity,” continued LCdr Lund. “What we’ll be looking for most in candidates is that they’re mature, physically fit, willing to learn, and capable of making logical split-second decisions within a high-stress environment.”He also wanted to ensure these new teams be viewed as a...

 In support of military veterans, Urge Studios, a downtown Victoria tattoo studio, will donate 100 per cent of their sales made from inking two special tattoos all day Sunday, Feb. 8.Proceeds will go to Wounded Warriors Canada.Those participating will choose from smaller, pre-drawn tattoo designs of the maple leaf or Canadian Flag, and will be invited to make a suggested minimum donation of $60.Tattoos are expected to take between 10 and 15 minutes. All Urge’s artists will be on-hand to meet patron demand.Urge Studios was founded in 1995 by Canadian Armed Forces airborne trooper Johnny Faulds, and the current owner, Sparky (Mark Adamson) has continued the legacy Faulds established in supporting the military community.Sparky says Faulds taught him how to tattoo.“I was John’s apprentice. When the shop originally opened, John and the  other artists tattooed a lot of guys in the military. Over the years we’ve kept that up that tradition.”Sparky also has deep ties to the mission of  Wounded Warriors Canada, a non-profit organization that helps Canadian Armed Forces members – be they regular force or reservists – who have been wounded or injured in their service to Canada.After years of tattooing men and women who had been deployed, Sparky has heard his fair share of stories.“I take them to heart, and I want to help out in any way I can.”Sergeant Dan Bodden, currently posted to the Canadian Forces Fleet School Esquimalt in the Language Training Division, will be getting tattooed at Urge.He is one of the founding members of Wounded Warrior Run B.C. (WWRBC).The run was established last year to increase public awareness of PTSD and raise funds for the foundation.The 600-kilometre run takes place Sunday, Feb. 15 to Friday, Feb. 20.A team of six relay runners, ages 24 to 45, will run from Port Hardy to...

A view of work point 100 years ago. This photo was taken on April 18th, 1915.

Members from 5e Regiment d’artillerie légère du Canada take position during a training scenario as part of Exercise RAFALE BLANCHE on January 21, 2015 in the training area of CFB Valcartier.

The Lodge at Broadmead resident, and military veteran, Eric McFall enjoys a chat with RAdm Bill Truelove. The Admiral visited the lodge in November as part of Remembrance Day activities.

Crewmembers of HMCS FREDERICTON strike guard rails on the foc'sle during the ship's transit into Catania, Sicily during Operation REASSURANCE on January 18, 2015.

Warrant Officer Eric Tremblay from 5e Régiment d’artillerie du Canada does an ice fishing demonstration during Exercise RAFALE BLANCHE, Quebec on January 23, 2015. 

A Boatswain aboard HMCS FREDERICTON operates the crane to recover the rigid hull inflatable boat during boat coxswain training on Operation REASSURANCE on January 24, 2015.

Members from 5e Regiment d’artillerie légère du Canada take cover as a CH-147 Chinook helicopter takes off with a M777 Howitzer artillery piece during Exercise RAFALE BLANCHE on January 21, 2015 in the training areas of CFB Valcartier.

[caption id="attachment_9020" align="alignnone" width="300"] Researchers develop system for safe Sea King landings[/caption]Conducting helicopter operations from Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) ships is a complex and dangerous procedure requiring the highest degree of safety.Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) has developed a specialized system that has the potential to increase the safety of complex at-sea operations, and ensure safer and smoother helicopter landings on RCN ships.“Wind, speed, ship motion, and sea states all affect helicopter landings at sea,” says T. J. Caron, Ship Modification Lead Engineer, Project Management Office, Maritime Helicopter Project.The DRDC Flight Deck Motion System measures and predicst ship and wave motions, and present a complete picture to the operator.“It is a valuable tool in ensuring safer operation of maritime helicopters and RCN ships, and reducing the risk to Canadian Armed Forces members during takeoff and landing,” says Caron.The RCN uses the estimates and wind measurements to determine ship course and speed for helicopter operations.When a helicopter takes off or lands on deck, the sensor mounted under the flight deck relays information to the real-time module of the Flight Deck Motion System.It measures and displays the current ship motions, and indicates whether the ship and helicopter are within safety limits for the takeoff or landing operation.The Flight Deck Motion System was originally developed to assist with CH-148 Cyclone Ship Helicopter Operation Limits trials.Most recently, the system played a role in the re-certification of Canada’s CH-124 Sea King helicopters for operations on the 12 newly refitted Halifax-class patrol frigates.Part of the Frigate Life Extension program, the refit resulted in changes to the frigate superstructure, the part of the ship that is above the main deck.Changes had the potential to impact the wind flow over the flight deck, alter the ships’ previously known air-wake, and increase the risks of flying in close...

[caption id="attachment_9015" align="alignnone" width="300"] Photo by: Lt(N) Anne Gardam CPO1 Shanna Wilson encourages the public to visit HMCS Malahat on Jan 31 2015.[/caption]For the first time in over 10 years, HMCS Malahat, Victoria’s naval reserve division, will have an Open House, opening its doors to the public on Saturday, Jan. 31 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.“Visitors will be able to tour our training establishment’s facilities, including its galley and boatshed,” said PO1 Nicole Phippard, event organizer.“They may have the opportunity to tour a 33-metre Orca-class patrol vessel, or go for a ride in a seven-metre rigid hulled inflatable boat, or RHIB.”Since moving to the 20 Huron Street location in James Bay in 1992, the naval reserve division, nestled between Fisherman’s Wharf and the Canadian Coast Guard base, has been hard at work preparing its part-time sailors to serve Canada when needed.Malahat is also a historic training and recruiting establishment.“This year marks the centennial of the birth of Canada`s naval reserve in Victoria,” said LCdr Michael Lawless, Commanding Officer of the approximately 130-person division.“We are proud of our history, and look forward to sharing with you our experiences in today`s naval reserve."Malahat is one of 24 naval reserve divisions, or commissioned “stone frigates”, located in major Canadian cities coast to coast.Naval reservists typically serve part-time on evenings and weekends throughout the year, with opportunities to serve full-time in the Canadian Armed Forces ashore, at sea, or abroad.As Malahat is located on Department of National Defence (DND) property, visitors should expect standard DND security procedures and are asked to bring government-issued identification.Those who wish to tour the Orca-class patrol vessel or go on a RHIB ride should wear flat, rubber-soled footwear, and be able climb ladders, as well as embark and disembark from small boats without assistance.Parents of children under 16...

[caption id="attachment_9012" align="alignnone" width="300"] Billy and Sarah Rieger are bringing the flavours of New Orleans to CFB Esquimalt.[/caption]On a chilly winter day, when you might wish your ham and cheese sandwich lunch was a piping hot bowl of chicken gumbo, you don’t have far to go to find the comfort food you crave.Just outside dockyard gates, in front of Lyall Street Service Station, a bright yellow food truck is serving up New Orleans cuisine three days a week.The owners of A Streetcar Named New Orleans, Sarah and Billy Rieger, spent much of the summer serving unique flavours at different markets and festivals.But in early November, with a baby soon to arrive, they settled their business in Esquimalt, just a few blocks from their home and their target audience: the men and women of CFB Esquimalt.“We just want to give the people who work at the base a different option for lunch, something new and exciting,” says Billy, a seasoned chef from New Orleans.Starting with a base of the “holy trinity” of New Orleans cooking - onions, celery and bell peppers - all their dishes are full of flavour, but not as spicy as one might expect.The belief that all New Orleans food is spicy is a common misconception the couple have been fighting since they got their business on the road.“We see people walk past us, certainly we saw it often at festivals, and you’d see someone say, ‘No, too spicy,’” says Sarah.Mimicking the actions of folks with jalapeno-averse stomachs, she shakes her head, pinches her face and pats her stomach.“I wanted to climb through the window and say, ‘No!’ We still haven’t figured out where this idea comes from, but it’s not spicy food.”For those who like some heat in their food, there is a selection of hot sauces...

City of Kingston Town Cryer, Chris Wyman opens the celebration for Sir John A MacDonald's 200th Birthday in front of Kingston City Hall with the Governor General's Foot Guard Regimental Band on January 11, 2015.

HMCS Montreal sits at the dockyard in Halifax, Nova Scotia during the early morning hours on January 14, 2015.

 Warrant Officer Daigle and his colleagues ski one of the new trails, which officially opened on January 12, 2015 at Owl’s Head ski resort in Mansonville, Quebec.

HMCS FREDERICTON's CH-124 Sea King helicopter prepares to hoist a crew member from the foc'sle as part of a training exercise while transiting.

Maj. General Dean Milner, Comd, of 1st Canadian Air Division (right), joins JTF-Iraq Commander, BG. General Dan Constable (left) and Air Task Force-Iraq Commander, Colonel Eric Kenny for a tour at Camp Patrice Vincent.