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The Canadian Air-Sea Transportable Brigade Group, or CAST, was a
Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...
battle group dedicated to the rapid reinforcement of Norway in the event of a land war in Europe. The Group was based on a
mechanized infantry Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with Armoured personnel carrier, armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also armoured corps). As defined by the United States Army, me ...
brigade, supported by two Rapid Reinforcement Fighter Squadrons equipped with
Canadair CF-5 The Canadair CF-5 (officially designated the CF-116 Freedom Fighter) is a Canadian licensed-built Northrop F-5 Freedom Fighter. It is a light, supersonic aircraft, supersonic, twin engine, daylight air superiority fighter primarily for the Cana ...
fighters and a variety of supporting units. Manpower varied between 4,800 and 5,500 troops depending on how it was counted. CAST formed in 1968 as part of a widespread realignment of Canadian forces in Europe, and disbanded again in 1989 when the Forces were recombined into larger battalion sized group in West Germany.


History


Cold War stance

The
Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...
had a continuous presence in West Germany since 1951, when the
27 Canadian Infantry Brigade The 27th Canadian Infantry Brigade (27CIBG) was an Active Force infantry brigade created on May 4, 1951, for service in West Germany. The brigade sailed to Rotterdam in November and December of that year. It was posted near Hanover and provided ...
was deployed under the command of the
British Army of the Rhine British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) was the name given to British Army occupation forces in the Rhineland, West Germany, after the First and Second World Wars, and during the Cold War, becoming part of NATO's Northern Army Group (NORTHAG) tasked ...
(BAOR). The number of men continually increased starting in October 1953 with the arrival of the
1st Canadian Infantry Brigade The 1st Canadian Infantry Brigade was a Canadian Army formation that served with the 1st Canadian Division in World Wars I and II. In 1953 it was reformed in Germany to become the 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group in 1992. William Antrobus ...
(1CIB), then the 2nd, and finally the 4th in 1957 which included a full
armoured regiment Armoured regiments are units provided by the Royal Armoured Corps of the British Army. History The first armoured regiments - known at the time as "tank battalions" - were formed in the First World War, first in the Machine Gun Corps and later a ...
. From that point on, the 4th was left in the field, although the individual units within it rotated back to Canada every three years. The forces were periodically reinforced and reached 6,700 men during the mid-1960s.Paul Mooney
"Change of Command marks long period of service in Europe"
, Canadian Department of Defence, 5 October 2004
The British referred to the CIGB as a "light division", and during wartime additional forces would bring the group to full divisional size. The mission of the army throughout this period was to fight a 30-day
nuclear war Nuclear warfare, also known as atomic warfare, is a War, military conflict or prepared Policy, political strategy that deploys nuclear weaponry. Nuclear weapons are Weapon of mass destruction, weapons of mass destruction; in contrast to conven ...
.Maloney, pg. 62 The forces were heavily mechanized and supported by a major commitment of the
Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...
's strength, notably its
Canadair CF-104 Starfighter The Canadair CF-104 Starfighter (CF-111, CL-90) is a modified version of the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter supersonic fighter aircraft built in Canada by Canadair under licence. It was primarily used as a ground attack aircraft, despite being des ...
s and their
tactical nuclear weapon A tactical nuclear weapon (TNW) or non-strategic nuclear weapon (NSNW) is a nuclear weapon that is designed to be used on a battlefield in military situations, mostly with friendly forces in proximity and perhaps even on contested friendly territ ...
s. The Canadian Navy was expected to add to the
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
mission of maintaining control of the North Atlantic and thereby guarantee the
logistics Logistics is the part of supply chain management that deals with the efficient forward and reverse flow of goods, services, and related information from the point of origin to the Consumption (economics), point of consumption according to the ...
needed to operate the 4th in combat conditions. Much of the needed command and logistics structure was expected to flow from the BAOR. In 1968 the various Canadian armed services were integrated into a single
Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...
. The 4th was renamed the
4 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group 4 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group (4CMBG; ) was a formation of the Canadian Army, then Canadian Forces Land Force Command, Mobile Command of the unified Canadian Forces. It was part of the European formation known as Canadian Forces Europe. T ...
(4 CMBG) on 1 May 1968, and attached to the newly named "Mobile Command", formerly the Army.


Realignment, formation of CAST

After
Pierre Trudeau Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau (October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000) was a Canadian politician, statesman, and lawyer who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada from 1968 to 1979 and from 1980 to 1984. Between his no ...
's Liberals won the
1968 Canadian federal election The 1968 Canadian federal election was held on June 25, 1968, to elect members of the House of Commons of Canada of the 28th Canadian Parliament, 28th Parliament of Canada. In April 1968, Prime Minister of Canada, Prime Minister Lester Pearson o ...
, they instituted a sweeping review of Canadian military and foreign policy. As part of this review, and in keeping with the general desire to significantly reduce the size of the Canadian Forces, the active European commitment was halved. 4 CMBG was detached from the BAOR, and repurposed as a reserve of either the US VII Corps or the German II Corps, on the southern flank of the NATO forces. This reduction in role meant that only one
battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...
remained in West Germany at a time, and that other brigades would not join them during war. At the same time, Trudeau eliminated Canada's nuclear role, eventually removing all nuclear arms from Canadian soil. These moves drew sharp criticism from the other NATO partners, who complained that Canada was not pulling its weight. In response, the Trudeau government offered a very different mission instead: a new formation roughly the size of the European portion of 4 CMBG would be deployed to Norway given one month's notice by the Norwegian government. They would be able to play a more decisive role in Norway than the same force could in the main battle line in Germany, and the Canadian troops experience in arctic warfare would prove useful. Norway had only a single brigade on active duty, so the Canadian brigade group would represent a major addition of strength. The argument won over NATO command, and the Norway mission was handed to the
5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group 5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group () (5 CMBG) is a Canadian Forces brigade group that is part of 2nd Canadian Division of the Canadian Army. It is based at CFB Valcartier, near Quebec City, Quebec. The brigade group is the formation respons ...
(5 CMBG) formed up at
CFB Valcartier 2nd Canadian Division Support Base Valcartier (2 CDSB Valcartier), formerly known as and commonly referred to as Canadian Forces Base Valcartier (CFB Valcartier), is a Canadian Forces base located in the municipality of Saint-Gabriel-de-Valc ...
. These units were primarily Francophone. CAST consisted of three major components; the three mechanized infantry battalions of the 5 CMBG, two Rapid Reinforcement Fighter Squadrons with 10 CF-5 fighters each, an artillery regiment and an armored reconnaissance squadron. In total, CAST contained about 5,500 men in the combined force. Their battle plan was known as Operational Plan BORAL.Maloney, pg. 63 BORAL relied on the Norwegians supplying the required
roll-on/roll-off Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, Trailer (vehicle), trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their ...
sealift capability, while Canadian commercial aircraft would be commandeered to move in advanced parties. In the case of a war, CAST would be joined by similar-sized units from the
United Kingdom/Netherlands Landing Force United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...
and US's 4th Marine Amphibious Brigade.


BRAVE LION

Throughout the
Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
the Canadian Army had been organized into a larger force, the BAOR. As a result, its ability to plan and operate large military operations on its own was never fully developed. Several operational exercises in the 1970s demonstrated a real lack of capability in this regard. Additionally, although the forces have been officially unified, there was little actual effort to combine the efforts of the land and air forces under a unified command. CAST had only operated as a joint unit once in the 1970s, and this exercise took place on Canadian soil. Opposition members and commenters in the Norwegian military and press questioned the ability for Canada to accomplish the CAST mission. These comments eventually prompted the
Defence Minister A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...
,
Jean-Jacques Blais Jean-Jacques Blais ( , ; born June 27, 1940) is a former Canadian politician, who represented the riding of Nipissing in the House of Commons of Canada from 1972 to 1984. He was a member of the Liberal Party of Canada. Born in Sturgeon Fall ...
, to formally request that CAST be operationally deployed in its entirety under wartime conditions. The operation would include the entire land force and one of the Rapid Reaction Squadrons with 10 CF-5's, a total of over 5,000 men. Planning started in the summer of 1984 and it was found the Operational Plan BORAL was sketchy at best - it had never been developed to any sort of operational level. Further, it became clear that "NDHQ planners… were addressing a large scale joint/combined exercise for the first time…" Planning dragged on, and BRAVE LION was not ready for deployment for a full two years, a worrying development for a system designed to be rapidly deployed in a short war. The required sealift capability was not available, and additional commercial ships from West Germany, England and Panama had to be chartered.Honderich, pg. B1 By the time the plans were being finalized in early 1986, the Progressive Conservatives (PCs) had long ago taken power in September 1984. They started a sweeping reform of their own, in keeping with the party's desire to reinvigorate the Canadian Forces. As the PCs had questioned the CAST mission in the past, they supported BRAVE LION. They also instituted early moves to realign their European commitment, including dedicating a battalion to NATO's
ACE Mobile Force (Land) The Allied Command Europe Mobile Force (AMF) was a small NATO quick reaction force, headquartered at Heidelberg, Germany, active from 1960 to 2002. It formed part of Allied Command Europe (ACE), headquartered at SHAPE at Casteau, Belgium. The lan ...
, a mobile reserve force. Ironically, ACE decided to test its capabilities by deploying to Norway and placed a Canadian general in charge of the exercise. The battalion shipped over late in February, before BRAVE LION. CAST forces finally started assembling in
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
in August 1986. Adding to the amusement over the process, Soviet ships suddenly docked nearby, claiming engine trouble. The main infantry sections and supporting units were in place in 7 days, but the mechanized forces and equipment were not unloaded until the 22nd day - the majority of time allotted to the entire war (30 days). There was no plan to test or provide for a strategic withdrawal, which many commented would leave the troops stranded.Honderich, pg. B8 Militarily, the forces proved entirely capable once they arrived, carrying out operations until they returned in October. The only notable event was the crash of a CH-137 Kiowa helicopter than resulted in three minor injuries. Small portions of the force, notably heavy trucks, were left in Norway to avoid having to ship them in the future. However, the entire mission structure behind the combat sections was generally considered a failure. Logistics support was cobbled together from several different existing groups, while the extensive logistics experience that was part of Headquarters Canadian Forces Europe was not called upon. Further confusion ensued over the role of the Canadian naval forces in the exercise; planning did not call for any Canadian ships to be dedicated to the mission as they were expected to be part of a much larger NATO antisubmarine effort. However, it was clear that the mission would require naval support, especially if opposed at landing, and such support had never been arranged. Finally, traditional rivalries between the land and air forces led to a division of effort between helicopter and fighter support that was never addressed.


Drawdown

BRAVE LION was extensively studied by both the military and civilian defence establishments. In the summer of 1982 the then Secret Land Force Operational Effectiveness Study conducted by Mobile Command under the direction of General Bezile sharply criticized the entire concept of sending a Canadian Brigade to Norway. It concluded in part that the CAST Brigade group "suffers important shortfalls in manning, operational stocks and war resources" and further that "there were no comprehensive plans for assembly, deployment and reception". Although couched in technical language, the report made it abundantly clear that Canada had been publicly proclaiming a commitment to an operational task that it had little capacity to fulfill. General Gérard Thériault, a major proponent of forces integration and the then-current Chief of the Defence Staff, stated that Canadian defence policy would be well served by consolidating their commitments in Europe. Thériault's replacement, General Paul Manson, started a review that suggested a number of changes to the CAST organization, but these were eventually ignored.Maloney, pg. 64 Manson's efforts were preempted by the major Defence White Paper started in 1984 and published by
Perrin Beatty Henry Perrin Beatty (born June 1, 1950) is a Canadian corporate executive and former politician, who served as a Progressive Conservative of the House of Commons from 1972 to 1993, and as a cabinet minister from 1979 to 1980 and again from 198 ...
in 1987. Although military spending had increased dramatically in the late 1970s, before the PCs took power, Beatty's paper complained that "if 'rust-out' were permitted to occur, either by intent or neglect, the loss of equipment in the 1990s would by itself dictate a new, greatly diminished defence role".Hampson, pg. 69 Primary among its capital expenditures were the purchase of an additional six s in addition to the six already ordered, a replacement for the
CH-124 Sea King The Sikorsky CH-124 Sea King (formerly CHSS-2) is a twin-engined anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopter designed for shipboard use by Canadian naval forces, based on the US Navy's SH-3 Sea King. Most CH-124s were assembled in Quebec by Unite ...
helicopter used on these ships, up to a dozen
nuclear submarine A nuclear submarine is a submarine powered by a nuclear reactor, but not necessarily nuclear-armed. Nuclear submarines have considerable performance advantages over "conventional" (typically diesel-electric) submarines. Nuclear propulsion ...
s, new ships to clear
mines Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to: Extraction or digging *Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging *Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine Grammar *Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun Mi ...
in Canadian waters (delivered as the ), and the development of Canadian operated space assets for communication and reconnaissance.Hampson, pg. 70 The report went on to complain that the current structure of the forces mean that "widespread land and air force commitments… represent a dilution of valuable combat resources, and cannot reasonably be supported or sustained from an ocean away in the event of hostilities." Given the worrying outcome of BRAVE LION, Beatty suggested shifting the CAST force to Germany to create a single division-sized unit, along with their air squadrons and other supporting units. Norwegian and other European politicians were dismayed by this move, and organized a meeting of MPs from across Europe to discuss it,Martin Cohn, "Ottawa rapped for abandoning Norway pledge", ''Toronto Star'', 25 May 1987, pg. A3 but to no avail. Numerous commentators complained that the Canadian mission should have been reversed; instead of moving the brigade group to Germany, where it represented a limited amount of additional firepower, they argued that the German units should be shifted to Norway, where they would cause a significant change in the balance of power. The Soviets normally had two divisions in the area; a full division of Canadian troops, on the defence, would represent a major military force. This point was made early by the Liberal defence critic, Doug Firth,Hampson, pg. 75 but these concerns were generally unheard given the outcry over the nuclear submarine issue. CAST was first reduced in size and one of its battalions moved to the
ACE Mobile Force (Land) The Allied Command Europe Mobile Force (AMF) was a small NATO quick reaction force, headquartered at Heidelberg, Germany, active from 1960 to 2002. It formed part of Allied Command Europe (ACE), headquartered at SHAPE at Casteau, Belgium. The lan ...
, which operated as a mobile reserve across the entire northern European area. CAST ended its active role in 1987, and was formally disbanded in November 1989.Carlson. pg. ii


References


Citations


Bibliography

* Sean Maloney
"Purple Haze: Joint Planning in the Canadian Forces from Mobile Command to J-Staff, 1975-1991"
''The Army Doctrine and Training Bulletin'', Volume 5 Number 4 (Winter 2002-2003), pg. 57-72 * Fen Osler Hampson
"Call to Arms: Canadian National Security Policy"
Canada Among Nations: A World in Conflict/1987, James Lorimer & Company, 1988 * M. Tucker
"Canadian Security Policy"
in Canada Among Nations 1985: The Conservative Agenda, James Lorimer & Company, 1986, pg. 69-88 * Adolph Carlson
"Who Will Stand the Nordic Guard?"
US Army War College, 30 May 1990 * John Honderich, "A promise kept: why Canada standa on guard for Norway", ''Toronto Star'', 28 September 1986, pg. B1, B8 Land Force Operational Effectiveness Study - Final Report dated 20 July 1982 (Initially classified Secret, the Report has since been declassified.)


See also

*
Military history of Canada The military history of Canada spans centuries of conflicts within the country, as well as international engagements involving the Canadian Armed Forces, Canadian military. The Indigenous nations of Canada engaged in conflicts with one another for ...
*
History of the Canadian Army The history of the Canadian Army, began when the title first came into official use in November 1940, during the Second World War, and is still used today. Although the official titles, Mobile Command, and later Land Force Command, were used from ...
*
Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...
*
List of armouries in Canada A number of armouries and drill halls exist in communities across Canada. Of these, the majority were built in Ontario and Quebec. Architecture Chief Dominion Architects The Chief Dominion Architect(s) designed a number of prominent public bu ...
{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 Brigades of the Canadian Army Canadian Mechanized Brigade Groups Military history of Norway Canadian military exercises