Canadian Leaders at Sea - May 2024

From May 20 to May 23, I was invited to participate in the Canadian Leaders at Sea program, a Strategic Outreach program put on a few times a year by the Royal Canadian Navy | Marine royale canadienne .

This fantastic initiative allowed myself and several other participants to experience what life is like aboard a ship in the Royal Canadian Navy, accompanying 250 crew and officers aboard HMCS Regina as the Halifax-class frigate set sail through the Juan de Fuca Islands and Georgia Strait conducting training and force generation activities.

May 20

The program began with the CLaS participants (many of whom traveled from Ontario, Quebec, and Alberta) checking in at the CFB Esquimalt Wardroom , an accomodation space for Department of National Defence (DND) personnel, located just outside of the gates of Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Esquimalt).

Following check-in, CLaS participants made their way to Lure Restaurant in downtown Victoria for a no-host meet & greet dinner with Michelle Dunlop , a Strategic Outreach Officer with the Royal Canadian Navy and the organizer of this program, and Admiral Christopher Robinson, Commander of Maritime Forces Pacific.

This was also the first time that the CLaS participants had an opportunity to meet in-person. The participants in this program were:

• Geneviève Binet (she/her elle/la) , Assistant Deputy Minister of Public Affairs at Department of National Defence
• Erin Gibbs Van Brunschot , Vice Dean & Professor of Sociology – Faculty of Arts at University of Calgary
• Michael Crowe , Vice President - Academic at Bow Valley College
• Karl Moore , Associate Professor – Strategy & Organization at McGill University
• Petr Musilek , Associate Dean (Research Operations) – Faculty of Engineering at University of Alberta
• Marina Sharpe , Professor – International Law at Royal Military College
• Ron Wallace, Fellow/Author at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute
• and myself.

Following this dinner, ClaS paricipants made their way back to the Wardroom to sleep and prepare to embark on the HMCS Regina the following day.

May 21

Upon waking up, eating breakfast at the Wardroom Galley (cafeteria), and checking out of the Wardroom, CLaS participants were bussed into CFB Esquimalt, where we were fitted with naval uniforms for the duration of the program. Once properly dressed, CLaS participants were transported around Esquimalt Harbour to the jetty where HMCS Regina was making ready to depart.

Upon embarking HMCS Regina, CLaS participants were welcomed by the ship’s command team and guides, who highlighted their various areas of expertise.

Following this welcome, CLaS participants made their way to their respective cabins, where they found the bunks (or "racks") where they would be sleeping for the next two nights.

After dropping their bags off in their respective cabins, CLaS participants were shown to the Wardroom, which is the mess where the ship's officers eat and socialize. Everyday at 10am, soup is served in each of the ship's 3 messes (the Wardroom is for Commissioned Officers, one other is for Junior Ranks, and the last mess is for Chiefs and Petty Officers).

Once Cdr Jeremy Samson embarked HMCS Regina, the Wardroom was reorganized into a briefing space, where the ship's Navigating Officer & Meteorological Officer gave a briefing on the navigating plans and local weather conditions that would direct the vessel's departure from Esquimalt Harbour.

HMCS Regina departed the jetty on a rainy Tuesday morning with tugboats standing by if any weather conditions arose that might cause the ship to need assistance in safely exiting the harbour.

CLaS participants were served lunch in the Junior Ranks Mess at noon, where the movie "Troy" was playing on the theatre's screen.

It was in talking with several of the younger sailors that I learned about the Naval Experience Program, a paid one-year program that allows individuals interested in joining the Navy to try their hand at a variety of different trades, before deciding whether or not they want to enlist at the one-year mark.

(*Also, I was blown away by the quality of food and meals aboard the ship, with the ship's cooks serving meals such as curried shrimp, roast beef, pancakes, french toast, and several other great meals that would certainly boost morale on months-long deplyments.)

After lunch, CLaS participants were treated to a Person Overboard demonstration.

This involved a mannequinn being tossed overboard, followed by an alarm being sounded, a flare shot into the water to mark the person's position, boatswains (sounds like "bo-zuns" - the personnel who perform manual tasks on the ship's decks) readying the ship's RHIB (Rigid-Hull Inflatable Boat) for deployment, the ship accelerating to ~28 knots to perform a fast, tight turn to get back to the person overboard quickly (all of us abovedecks had to hold on tight during this turn), the RHIB being deployed with two individuals onboard, and then returning shortly after with the mannequinn aboard, with the RHIB and all onboard being hoisted back aboard the Regina, where the "person" who had fallen overboard was whisked away to the sickbay for inspection.

Later that afternoon, CLaS participants were given a tour around various areas of the HMCS Regina, including the Bridge (where we all had the opportunity to steer the ship).

CLaS participants were shown the Machinery Control Room (MCR),which also oversees the ship's power generation.

CLaS participants were then shown the Sickbay, where emergency medical procedures can be performed.

CLaS participants were then introduced to the ship's Diving Officer, who described the secondary duty of being a ship’s diver (a secondary duty on board), and the Rapid Attack Team, who are highly trained firefighters meant to deal with fires aboard a vessel (fires can be one of the most dangerous emergencies aboard a ship and must be dealt with quickly).

After another great meal, this time in the Chiefs and Petty Officers Mess, CLaS participants were able to see an exercise where the Canadian Air Force was landing a Cyclone helicopter on the flight deck of the HMCS Regina, a training exercise necessary for those pilots to keep their training and credentials up-to-date.

Following this demonstration, CLaS participants finished the day by sitting down with Commanding Officer Samson for a fireside chat in the Wardroom, where he shared his experience and insights as a Commander, information about the culture and hierarchy of the Navy's command structure, and information about the HMCS Regina and her crew.

May 22

The following morning after breakfast, CLaS participants made their way to the bridge to watch HMCS Regina drop anchor in English Bay, where Admiral Robinson would be embarking the vessel after delivering a keynote speech at a Citizenship Ceremony in Vancouver that morning.

Following the anchorage, CLaS participants were shown:

The ship's gym (various exercise bikes were also placed throughout the passageways and decks of the ship and in any other available spaces),

The ship's engine room, containing two huge gasoline engines and one diesel engine, as well as the reverse osmosis room that provides de-salinated water to the ship throughout its long deployments,

CLaS participants were then shown to the Captain's Quarters, where they sat down for a talk with Cdr Samson.

As Commding Officer, Cdr Samson's phone rang at least once every five minutes, as he received constant updates from various officers on the bridge briefing him on various factors aboard the ship and in the surrounding environment (such as a fishing vessel in English Bay that appeared to be putting down fishing lines in the anchored ship's path).

Following these tours, CLaS participants were treated to a Casualty Clearing demonstration. (Keep in mind, the halls (or "flats") on the ship are quite narrow, and you can only move up or down a ladder to the next deck through a hatchway - this makes medical transportation onboard very complex, especially as there are ~250 sailors performing various tasks aboard a warship of this size)

This consisted of a crew member, decked out in make-up that simulated burns and injuries, falling out of a doorway, screaming and simulating that he had been injured in an explosion.

Alarms started going off and sailors rushed to the scene, with medical personnel arriving to cut-off his clothes, attach a breathing apparatus, and wrap him in a reflective heating sheet, before sliding him onto a flat carrying device.

The device was then secured about the "injured sailor, with several other crew members carrying it towards the nearby ladder and hatchway, where a rope was tied to the end of the device, and the sailor was hoisted to the deck above, where he was whisked away to the Sickbay for additional treatment.

The response and precision of this operation was quite impressive, lasting for several minutes.

CLaS participants then went up to the bridge and upper decks to watch the HMCS Regina sail into Howe Sound for the evening's events.

In Howe Sound, a Banyan (BBQ) was served on the Flight Deck, with the ship's crew and the CLaS participants enjoying dinner outside, surrounded by views of Howe Sound and the surrounding mountains.

Following dinner, crew members stood to attention about the Flight Deck, with Commanding Officer Samson standing in the middle, delivering promotions and commendations to the crew members that had earned them over the previous few months. (This was a particularly special event to witness, seeing these crew members being applauded by their peers, juniors, and superiors for their accomplishments)

Following the Banyan, CLaS participants were treated to the sight of the Cyclone helicopter performing a "Brownie Run", a training exercise where the helicopter passed close by the HMCS Regina, passing close to and over the frigate several times.

Before heading belowdecks, the CLaS participants witnessed a fantastic sunset over the Georgia Strait.

The CLaS participants ended the final day aboard HMCS Regina with a fireside chat with Admiral Robinson in the Wardroom, where he answered any questions that we had, discussed the threats that Canada and the Pacific Fleet faces, and spoke about the culture and organizational structure of the Royal Canadian Navy.

May 23

After breakfast on Thursday, May 23, CLaS participants made their way abovedecks to watch HMCS Regina sail into Esquimalt Harbour, returning to CFB Esquimalt.

CLaS participants then gathered their bags and disembarked HMCS Regina, saying goodbye to the fantastic ship and crew.

After disembarking HMCS Regina, CLaS participants were taken aboard a RHIB and sped across the Esquimalt Harbour to the first stop of the onshore portion of the program.

The group then made their way to the hangar where the Royal Canadian Navy's Pacific Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) Unit described their specialized training and equipment, which allows them to respond to over 100 calls a year to handle explosives (mines, grenades, mortars, improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and various other explosives - both new and old) found across their area of operations.

The team even showed us rocket launcher - similar to one that had been found, loaded and unexploded, next to Vancouver Island's higway over the Malahat several years ago.

The group then made way their outside, where various members of the Pacific Diving Unit spoke about the specialized training and equipment (including the portable hyperbaric chambers that had been sent to the location of the Oceangate Titan submersible search on Canada's East Coast) that allows them to perform complex underwater operations.

Following their time with the Pacific Diving Unit, CLaS participants then received a tour aboard the Asterix - a replenishment ship leased by the Royal Canadian Navy to profive supply and refueling services to other naval vessels at sea.

This ship, manned by both civilians and naval personnel, was much more luxurious than the HMCS Regina (on account of its specifications being different than naval warships), with a full gym, wide passageways, larger cabins (each with a single bed and attached bathroom), a large cafeteria, a full sickbay and dental room, and a lot of room to store supplies.

After seeing the Asterix, CLaS participants were then taken to Work Point, and the naval training facilities there.

After eating lunch with several training officers, CLaS participants were shown to the Bridge Simulator, which allows officers to train on steering a vessel and operating a bridge as they prepare to face real-life siturations.

(It was amazing to meet with the training officers, and hear about the curriculum and culture at the academy, and the training provided to junior officers)

With the end of the CLaS program fast approaching, participants were transported back to CFB Esquimalt for a tour of HMCS Corner Brook, a long-range hunter-killer submarine.

*Before commanding the Pacific Fleet, Admiral Robinson was previously a submarine commander - with his longest deployment being 75 days below the sea at one time. Admiral Robinson is also taller than the 6-foot bunks in a submarine, commenting that he could often not walk upright in the submarine, and would have to sleep with his head in the compartment at the end of the bunk in the compact Commanding Officer's cabin aboard the submarine.

CLaS participants were then shown around the submarine, including the control room, messes, bunks, bathrooms (bathrooms on vessels are called "heads") and the torpedo room.

There are 59 bunks on the submarine, but any additional personnel (such as Special Forces or Intelligence Officers) would have to sleep on the torpedo racks.

Out of all the vessels that we explored, the submarine was the most cramped, yet also one of the most impressive in terms of function and mission.

When at sea, submariners are often not able to utilize the showers or wash their clothes, often wearing the same uniform throughout the duration of a deployment.

*Submarines often have the best cooks in the fleet, to maintain morale during those long deployments under the ocean.

Conclusion

And with the tour of the HMCS Corner Brook concluded, CLaS participants were bussed back to the Wardroom of CFB Esquimalt to return their uniforms and say goodbye, wrapping up a fantastic program and experience with the Royal Canadian Navy | Marine royale canadienne .

Looking back at the program, I was blown away by the RCN's hospitality, and the passion, professionalism, and competence of every officer and sailor that we crossed paths with during this experience.

Seeing how the leaders of the Royal Canadian Navy's Pacific Fleet are working to improve processes and culture, gather feedback, address issues, improve diplomacy with our allies, and protect Canada's coasts in an increasingly volative and worrying world made me exceedingly grateful for the work that they do, and the caliber of our sailors.

Final Note

In addition to Michelle Dunlop , the fantastic Strategic Outreach Officer who organized and oversaw this program (and all of the other incredible individuals that we met), one crew member worthy of mention was Officer Bakir - who served as our guide aboard the HMCS Regina and was an amazing ambassador for the RCN.

Well-spoken and obviously very passionate about the Royal Canadian Navy and his role as an Officer (and a member of the ship's dive team), it was Officer Bakir who told me that the 4 Pillars of being a Naval Warfare Officer are being a Manager, Leader, Warrior, and Mariner.

When speaking about the test that he was studying for to move up to the next rank, towards becoming a Commanding Officer, Officer Bakir told us that he would have to be able to demonstrate a thorough understanding in Engineering, Naval Warfare & Strategy, Leadership/Management, and various other disciplines to a panel of superiors. It was these skills and competencies that Officer Bakir was developing (and which all Senior Officers would have had to demonstrate in their careers), that made me realize that he (and many of the Commanding & Senior Officers that we had encountered) would be a great asset to any organization that employed him after his time with the Navy.

Officer Bakir was a fantastic guide and ambassador for the Navy, deserving of commendation and recognition, and it brings me hope for the future if there are many more like him amongst the ranks of the Royal Canadian Navy.

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