CANADIAN ARMY The Canadian Army is a highly professional force consisting of a fully integrated Regular Force, Army Reserve, Canadian Rangers, and civilian personnel. Canadian soldiers train to maintain readiness and develop their high-end war-fighting skills. Experience shows that highly trained, versatile and well-equipped combat forces can rapidly adapt to humanitarian assistance, disaster relief or peace operations. The Canadian Army is agile, scalable and responsive, providing the Government with a range of military capabilities on land. The Army can deploy as little as a single individual to perform tasks such as capacity building, and it has the depth to permanently shape the security environment through effective deterrence of threats and ultimately, with a critical mass of troops on the ground, to prevail in the most difficult circumstances – combat with an advanced adversary. The flexibility to support small missions while remaining ready to conduct large operations is made possible by the brigade group structure of the Army. It is only at this level that it is possible THE BRIGADE GROUP The Army trains to fight at the brigade group-level. This is the minimum level at which it is possible to execute joint campaigns while integrating various components, be they from another service, government department, non-governmental organization, or coalition partner. The brigade group consists of approximately 4,800 soldiers, organized in eight major units generally including Artillery, Armour, Infantry, Engineer, and Combat Service Support organizations. Combinations of these units operate together in “battle groups” to provide the joint force with the requisite firepower, mobility, protection, sustainment, and command and control functions to effectively coordinate their employment. 36 to execute integrated joint operations with the rest of the Canadian Armed Forces, other government departments, NATO and other allies and partner forces, and non-governmental organizations. The Army’s operational effectiveness relies on realistic, challenging and regular training up to the brigade grouplevel. This ensures that deployed Army formations can succeed in any environment regardless of condition. To adapt to the changing security environment, the Army’s capabilities must allow for efficient and effective communication, command and control; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; manoeuvre; the application of firepower; and sustainment. Maintaining the proper mix of combat capabilities, the ability to operate jointly with the rest of the Canadian military and in concert with key allies and partners is crucial for the Army’s success. Furthermore, each soldier is an integral component in any task-force, able to anticipate conditions on the ground, provide and receive information and intelligence to and from higher levels, and contribute to taking action at the right time and place in order to achieve mission objectives. All of these capabilities must be networked and integrated, starting with the individual systems carried by each soldier. Fundamental to future effectiveness as a combat-ready force, the Canadian Army will recapitalize many core capabilities, such as command, control and communications systems, weapons and soldier night vision systems, and logistic vehicle fleets. The Canadian Army will continue to pursue investment in war-fighting capabilities such as ground-based air defence, bridge and gap crossing equipment, anti-tank guided missile systems, and vehicles to better operate in Canada’s north. These investments in the Canadian Army will further improve interoperability with the Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal Canadian Navy, Special Operations Forces, and Canada’s allies and partners, while maintaining its operational advantage over potential adversaries.