Former Canadian Soldier Wants to be a Reservist despite PTSD

[SupersonicMax]

If you've got a list then we can use it to start making those people civilians and putting the PYs into line units. If you cannot/will not deploy, you shouldn't be in uniform, unless we're leveraging that individuals previous CAF experience to help train others for a time until a comfortable transition to civilian life.

You also have to be careful with tying an individual as not deployable simply because they're in a non-line unit but fully capable and willing to go.

Sent from my SM-G935W8 using Tapatalk

In the end, you still spend more money by doing this.  Money isn't suddenly produced out of thin air because you make a position civilian. 

Many staff positions, most training positons do not require deployments.  The CAF has to take into account thr investment in people before they make a decision wrt medical release especially when that person can still effectively do the work.

For example, a fighter pilot costs north of a millions dollars to train to a basic level and several millions up to an advanced level.  Test pilots, none of whom are expected to deploy, have to go through a $1.5M course after they gained experience that is, in itself, worth millions.

All the experience an knowledge is lost after they are released.

 

[dapaterson]

There is significant public funding expended in support of messes and other, notionally NPP activities.  For example, CANEX pays no rent or utilities for its facilities; those costs are borne by the public.  Mess construction is a public expense.  Certain management costs associated with messes are borne by the public.

 

[dapaterson]

In the end, you still spend more money by doing this.  Money isn't suddenly produced out of thin air because you make a position civilian. 

Many staff positions, most training positons do not require deployments.  The CAF has to take into account thr investment in people before they make a decision wrt medical release especially when that person can still effectively do the work.

For example, a fighter pilot costs north of a millions dollars to train to a basic level and several millions up to an advanced level.  Test pilots, none of whom are expected to deploy, have to go through a $1.5M course after they gained experience that is, in itself, worth millions.

All the experience an knowledge is lost after they are released.

If we train a pilot, who then gets a medical condition that prevents them from flying, then they are useless as a pilot - useless for the job for which they have been trained; those costs have been sunk and are not recoverable, so stop thinking about them.

We are allocated 68K paid Reg F positions for the who of the CAF.  Including ill and injured, including those not yet occupationally trained, including those on advanced training... that's it, that's all.  Within NDHQ there are groups (civilian Defenc Scientists) that conduct analyses and attempt to ensure that there is a balance between the deployable / non-deployable positions so that people are not kept constantly on the deployable treadmill.  Clog the non-deployable positions, and you're burning out / breaking the remaining folks as well.

So the 68K is a limiting factor that can't be assumed away, or sprinkled with DS fairy dust to ignore it.

 

[SupersonicMax]

A pilot can be fit to fly but unfit for universality of service.  Happenned in the recent past.  Member was medically released (irony is that he received his medical release decision while on deployment).

We lost this experience forever and he is now flying in the civilian sector. 

 

[Strike]

A pilot can be fit to fly but unfit for universality of service.  Happenned in the recent past.  Member was medically released (irony is that he received his medical release decision while on deployment).

We lost this experience forever and he is now flying in the civilian sector.

So, would you rather have that pilot then stuck in the training community for another 15-20 years with no exposure to any expeditionary ops or exercises?  What kind of instructor would that make?

I'll tell you, when I was in MJ, the best instructors were the ones that had just come from an operational unit and the worst were the ones who had just come from MJ themselves or who hadn't seen an operational Sqn in a dog's age, for the simple reason that they had either lost touch with what the rest of the CAF was doing or never had exposure to it in the first place and thought that MJ was the 'real' world.

People need to be deployable, whether they ever deploy or not.  And having a pre-existing condition, especially one that is likely to be exacerbated by a deployment, is grounds enough to refuse readmission AFAIK.

 

[SupersonicMax]

Post them to the OTU, let them teach fighter pilot courses and fighter weapons instructor courses.  Some of the best fighter IPs I had were reservists with tons of Hornet experience (and in some cases, no Op deployments)

They can keep up with times by participating in multi-national exercises.  A fighter op deployment is always a tiny fraction of what we do (for example, in Irak we only did Close Air Support.  We did Interdiction but that was a piece of cake compared to what we train for).  This is one of 10 mission sets we train for.  In that sense, operational experience is not necessarily the be all end all.  Where we gain valuable experience is when we participate in exercises such as Red Flag.  This is where we truly learn how to employ as a fighting force.  And these individuals could participate.

So yes, retain the experience and find ways to capitalize on the investment.

 

[Jarnhamar]

  has the condition under control and that his PTSD would not impede his performance as a nursing officer.

Impossible to say his PTSD wouldn't impede his performance or he wouldn't be exposed to a trigger and make his condition 100 times worse.

 

[The Bread Guy]

... They can keep up with times by participating in multi-national exercises ...

I don't know if this is the right question, but if someone's medically unfit - for whatever reason - to deploy, or even remain in the employ of the CAF, would they medically fit to even go on ex?  Just askin' ...

 

[SupersonicMax]

If they are fit to fly an aircraft, what difference does it make if they fly that aircraft in Cold Lake or in Eielson or Nellis?

 

[Kokanee]

I'll tell you, when I was in MJ, the best instructors were the ones that had just come from an operational unit and the worst were the ones who had just come from MJ themselves or who hadn't seen an operational Sqn in a dog's age, for the simple reason that they had either lost touch with what the rest of the CAF was doing or never had exposure to it in the first place and thought that MJ was the 'real' world.

Ha! Reminds me of a Sgt I had my last year who had come to my Unit (operational) from a school where they had been for over ten years... Literal white glove inspections of field vehicles etc.....

 

[Strike]

If they are fit to fly an aircraft, what difference does it make if they fly that aircraft in Cold Lake or in Eielson or Nellis?

But do the guys and gals posted to the fighter OT sqn even get to go on exercise beyond domestic tasks?  I know for my own fleet they very rarely (almost never) get sent outside their AOR because their primary task is to teach and they are damn busy doing that.

 

[daftandbarmy]

What part of unit training do you give up to fund your museum and messes improvement because that would be the decision?

He volunteers, like all the others who do this work. He could likely add more value than a civilian volunteer in some areas because of his military background. And possibly, through networking, he can also find a civvie job locally.