The Canadian Army of Today

The Canadian Army is the land component of the Canadian Armed Forces and the largest of its three elements, the other two being the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force.

Through programs at bases, armouries and training centres across the country, the Canadian Army produces soldiers who are well-trained, well-equipped, well-led and ready for operations at home and abroad. Canadian soldiers train and are ready for a wide range of scenarios. For the purposes of domestic or expeditionary missions, Canadian Army units are placed under the command of Canadian Joint Operations Command.

Canadian soldiers hail from all corners of this country and reflect Canadian society in many ways. The Canadian Army is proud of its soldiers’ involvement in communities beyond the parameters of its defence mandate. Units initiate and participate in events to remember the past, promote esprit de corps and celebrate Canadian heritage. Parades, festivals and concerts are just some of the ways that Canadians citizens get to interact with their soldiers. Thanks primarily to the citizen-soldiers of Canada’s Reserve Force, the Canadian Army has a presence in virtually every region of the country.

Vision

Vision

The Canadian Army - as part of the Canadian Armed Forces - will be a soldier-centric, professional and integrated force achieving operational excellence at home and abroad. While working alongside Whole of Government colleagues, key allies and partners, the Canadian Army will be a scalable, agile, and responsive force that operates among populations to deliver decisive land power in the achievement of Canadian defence objectives.

Mission

Mission

The Canadian Army will posture for concurrent operations by generating combat effective, multi-purpose land forces to meet Canada’s defence objectives.

Role

Role

The Army protects Canadians and our interests by:

  • defending Canadian territory
  • maintaining Canada's sovereignty by providing land surveillance and combat-ready forces
  • contributing to the collective defence of North America
  • assisting provincial and other authorities with natural disasters including floods, forest fires, storms, earthquakes and other emergencies
  • providing armed and unarmed assistance to civil authorities when needed to maintain public order and security
  • supporting Canadian interests abroad, by providing forces to the UN, NATO, and other operations involving more than two nations, which can include serving as peacekeepers and providing humanitarian assistance
Overview

The Canadian Army is comprised of the:

  • 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Canadian Divisions, the Army formations in Quebec, Western Canada, Ontario and Atlantic Canada, respectively. They are each responsible for providing combat-ready land forces, conducting general-purpose training and providing support services to other organizations as requested;
  • Canadian Army Doctrine and Training Centre, responsible for planning and managing the training program of the Canadian Army;
  • Army Reserve Force, organized into ten Brigade Groups across the country, and,
  • Canadian Rangers, a sub-component of the Canadian Armed Forces Reserve that supports national-security and public-safety missions in Canada’s northern, coastal and isolated areas.
Size
  • 22,500 members serve as full-time soldiers in the Regular Force
  • 21,500 are part-time, volunteer soldiers in the Reserve Force
    • including 5,300 Rangers who serve in sparsely settled northern, coastal and isolated areas of Canada
  • 3,500 civilian employees who support the Army
  • 63 Regular Force and 185 Reserve Force Units in 117 Communities
  • 194 Ranger Patrols in more than 220 Communities
Trades

Soldiers belong to different trades comprised of the:

  • Royal Canadian Armoured Corps
  • The Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery
  • Corps of Royal Canadian Engineers
  • Royal Canadian Corps of Signals
  • Royal Canadian Infantry Corps
  • Logisticians
  • Royal Canadian Medical Services
  • Royal Canadian Dental Corps
  • Corps of Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
  • Royal Canadian Chaplain Services
  • Military Police
  • Legal personnel
  • Musicians
  • Personnel selection and training development staff
  • Public affairs and intelligence personnel
  • As well as members of the Royal Canadian Army Cadet Instructor Cadre.
Regular Force

The Regular Force has three Mechanized Brigade Groups composed of units stationed in Western Canada, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada.

Each brigade is made up of

  • three infantry battalions (two mechanized, one light),
  • an armoured regiment
  • an artillery regiment
  • a combat engineer regiment
  • a reconnaissance squadron
  • appropriate combat support, communications, medical and service support units

As well, there is an engineer support regiment, air defence regiment, and electronic warfare squadron.

Divisions

2nd Canadian Division (2 Cdn Div) is responsible to provide combat ready land forces in accordance with assigned tasks, conduct general purpose training in preparation for various land operations, and provide support services to other organizations as directed or as mutually arranged. It includes all Regular and Reserve Force units in Quebec.

3rd Canadian Division (3 Cdn Div) is responsible to provide combat ready land forces in accordance with assigned tasks, conduct general purpose training in preparation for various land operations, and provide support services to other organizations as directed or as mutually arranged. It includes all Regular and Reserve Force units in western Canada from the Pacific Ocean to Thunder Bay, Ontario, with the exception of the Canadian Manoeuvre Training Centre in Wainwright, Alberta, which is administered by the Canadian Army Training and Doctrine Centre.

4th Canadian Division (4 Cdn Div) is responsible to provide combat ready land forces in accordance with assigned tasks, conduct general purpose training in preparation for various land operations, and provide support services to other organizations as directed or as mutually arranged. It includes all Regular and Reserve Force units in Ontario, with the exception of a portion of North Western Ontario, which falls under 3rd Canadian Division (3 Cdn Div). Army national training and doctrine facilities in Ontario are administrated by the Canadian Army Doctrine and Training Centre.

5th Canadian Division (5 Cdn Div) is responsible to provide combat ready land forces in accordance with assigned tasks, conduct general purpose training in preparation for various land operations, and provide support services to other organizations as directed or as mutually arranged. It includes all Regular and Reserve Force units in the four Atlantic Provinces, with the exception of the 2nd Battalion The Royal Canadian Regiment, which falls under the operational command of 4th Canadian Division (4 Cdn Div). The Combat Training Centre in Gagetown, New Brunswick, is administered by the Canadian Army Doctrine and Training Centre.

Note: 1st Canadian Division Headquarters, as of 1 April 2015, is part of Canadian Joint Operations Command (CJOC).

Reserve Force

The Army Reserve Force is organized into ten Brigade Groups spread across the country.

In total there are:

  • 51 infantry battalions
  • 19 logistic units
  • 21 armoured units
  • 17 artillery units
  • 12 engineer units
  • 10 signals regiments
  • four military police units
  • four intelligence units
Canadian Rangers

The Canadian Rangers are a sub-component of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Reserves.

They provide patrols and detachments for national security and public safety missions in sparsely settled northern, coastal and isolated areas of Canada that cannot conveniently or economically be covered by other parts of the CAF.

Canadian Army Doctrine and Training Centre (CADTC)

The mission of Canadian Army Doctrine and Training Centre (CADTC) is to plan and manage the intellectual development and training of the Canadian Army. That includes all personnel deployed as part of the Army under a Task Force or Joint Task Force.

Canadian Combat Support Brigade (CCSB)

The CCSB is the Canadian Army’s centre of excellence for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, electronic warfare and information operations. It is under the command of the 5th Canadian Division and has units located at:

Kingston, Ontario

Gagetown, New Brunswick

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