- Reaction score
- 8,358
- Points
- 1,160
And this from a purported friend of the military....
This article, generally well written and cleanly argued was accompanied by a photograph of a B1 bomber standing beside a pile of Very Large Bombs (type unknown to this particular observer - one bomb looks much like another to me) with the caption stating the this was the capability that the CF was looking to acquire.
That led to this letter to the editor
I have written to the Post pointing out their error and the consequences of lousy fact checking. In this case it wasn't the reporter, Chris Wattie, who was at fault.... a piss-poor job on the part of the photo-editor and the editorial staff it would seem.
Coupled with their editorial on the subs (http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/search/story.html?id=e9d7e12a-9566-4fbb-84eb-4c47a84af16c) they are rapidly falling into the category of "with friends like these........."
Army eyes 'bunker-buster' missiles
'Pretty lethal machines' can punch through concrete
Chris Wattie
National Post
October 26, 2004
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The Canadian army is considering buying hundreds of "bunker-buster" missiles, U.S.-made weapons capable of penetrating concrete walls almost a metre thick to destroy enemy strong points, military officials have confirmed.
The United States has approved the sale of 2,600 anti-tank guided missiles and 400 of the anti-bunker missiles to Canada for up to US$136-million, but the Canadian Forces is still considering whether it can afford the new, high-tech weaponry.
The TOW (short for Tube-Launched, Optically-Tracked, Wire-Guided) missiles, built by Raytheon Co., have a range of about four kilometres and can be launched from special ground platforms or from launchers mounted on vehicles.
The Canadian army is currently modifying a number of its LAV-III light-armoured vehicles to fire TOW missiles from their turrets. The TOW 2B missile is designed to fly into the air and descend on an enemy tank or bunker from above, where the armour or concrete is thinnest.
According to Raytheon, the two-part shaped charge in the missile's warhead can penetrate even the thickest tank armour and can blast through double-reinforced concrete up to 0.6 metres thick.
But Major Chris Lemay, a Canadian army spokesman, said the military has not decided whether or not to buy the new missiles. "This ammunition has not been ordered," he said.
"This was a check of the availability and price ... to see whether or not we could buy them, if it was decided that this was a capability we wanted to acquire."
Maj. Lemay said the army is considering the bunker-buster missiles -- which he called an "anti-structure capability" -- because planners expect many future overseas missions will involve fighting in cities or other built-up areas where every building is a potential strong point from which enemy forces could attack Canadian troops or vehicles.
"We don't have any of these bunker-buster missiles in our current inventory," he said. "Since we're looking more and more at fighting in an urban environment, this is a capability we wanted to look into acquiring."
The army currently uses its Carl Gustav recoilless rifle and the M-72 anti-armour weapon (similar to the Second World War's bazookas) to breach enemy bunkers, "but they don't always have the desired effect," Maj. Lemay said. "We wanted to look at getting a more powerful, purpose-built capability for that role."
However, Colonel Howard Marsh, a former army officer who is now an analyst with the Conference of Defence Associations, said the most crucial question is money.
Although he called the new generation TOW missiles "pretty lethal machines," he questioned whether the cash-strapped Canadian military can afford them.
"They're probably trying to sort out whether they can pay for them, and how," he said. "It's going to be a challenge."
"Right now they've only got about 40 cents on the dollar for capital expenditures, and $136- million is a lot of money."
The Pentagon told the U.S. Congress last week that the sale "will contribute to the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the military capabilities of Canada."
"Canada will use these missiles to increase its military defensive posture and will have no difficulty absorbing these additional missiles into its armed forces," the U.S. military said, adding: "The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not affect the basic military balance in the region."
Maj. Lemay said the TOW anti-armour missiles could be bought by 2008, for use in the LAV-III vehicles modified for the anti- armour role. No decision has yet been made on the bunker-buster missiles, he said.
© National Post 2004
This article, generally well written and cleanly argued was accompanied by a photograph of a B1 bomber standing beside a pile of Very Large Bombs (type unknown to this particular observer - one bomb looks much like another to me) with the caption stating the this was the capability that the CF was looking to acquire.
That led to this letter to the editor
'Smart choices' for our military
National Post
October 27, 2004
I hope the Canadian army does not continue to shop around for 400 anti-bunker missiles. What's next? B1 bombers? Unless our military planners foresee Canada mounting a "shock and awe offensive" soon, I submit that our military types should refocus their procurement priorities so as to acquire state-of-the-art air, sea and satellite-based equipment to help ensure proper surveillance of our borders, our ports, our coastal water, and of the Arctic region (the sovereignty of which the United States and Denmark regularly dispute).
Wayne M. House,
Nepean, Ont.
I have written to the Post pointing out their error and the consequences of lousy fact checking. In this case it wasn't the reporter, Chris Wattie, who was at fault.... a piss-poor job on the part of the photo-editor and the editorial staff it would seem.
Coupled with their editorial on the subs (http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/search/story.html?id=e9d7e12a-9566-4fbb-84eb-4c47a84af16c) they are rapidly falling into the category of "with friends like these........."