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The Vanguard Podcast

Welcome to the Vanguard Podcast, a weekly radio show discussing news, trends, and event coverage for the Canadian Defence Industry. Vanguard is Canada’s oldest trade journal of record that provides a forum for Canada’s security and defence community, discussing strategic perspectives and overviews of government and military policy and practice, through interviews with leading practitioners and contributions from renowned experts, including representatives from industry. Intersecting strategy, technology and policy, Vanguard explores emerging trends and best practices to help enhance Canada’s holistic approach to defence and security, both domestically and internationally.
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Now displaying: October, 2017
Oct 30, 2017

In this show, Marcello Sukhdeo talks with Marc Bouvrette, president of Gap Wireless about Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Solutions (UAVs). Hear about UAV trends, solutions, applications, training, regulations, and what to expect beyond 2020.

Questions include:

  • What trends are you seeing in the marketplace for Enterprise-grade drones and other UAV solutions?
  • What differentiates drones suited for the enterprise versus consumer-level drones?
  • What types of enterprise applications are prevalent today?
  • How extensive is training for drone operators?
  • Are regulations for enterprise drone use more strict that for consumer?
  • With the increase in drone deployment overall, management of flight plans etc. must be taking up significant resources with regulators?
  • At Gap Wireless you are stocking and distributing UAV Solutions. How are you keeping pace with growing demand for the latest technology?
  • When you look to the year 2020 and beyond, what do you foresee for the UAV industry?
Oct 23, 2017

In this episode, Marcello Sukhdeo talks about the Canadian Armed Forces counter explosive threat exercise which is underway, Bombardier to sell control of its C Series airliner program to Airbus, and Canadians are fearful of a nuclear attack according to a recent survey.

 

ARDENT DEFENDER 2017

 

The Canadian Armed Forces have begun a counter explosive threat exercise involving international military participants and Canadian law enforcement agencies. This exercise began on October 16th and will run to November 3rd.

 

This exercise which is named ARDENT DEFENDER 2017 provides an opportunity for explosive ordnance disposal and improvised explosive device teams to run through scenarios that enable them to practice neutralizing and safely disposing of explosive devices and countering the threat networks that employ them. The training will strengthen inter-operability between Allies, partner nations, Global Affairs Canada and Canadian law enforcement agencies.

 

Bombardier to sell control of its C Series airliner program

 

Bombardier Inc. has struck an agreement to sell control of its C Series airliner program to Airbus Group.

 

The C Series program, has been at the centre of major political and investor drama in Canada since its inception. The single-aisle airliner's development at a cost of $6-billion (U.S.) drove Bombardier to the brink of bankruptcy in 2015 before Quebec handed the company a lifeline by investing $1-billion in the plane.

 

Quebec supports the transaction with Airbus, calling it the best solution to protect and create jobs in a sector vital to the province's economy. Ottawa has also offered a preliminary endorsement of the transaction, saying it would require review under federal investment law.

 

Canadians are fearful of a nuclear attack

 

With North Korea issuing warnings that “war may break out at any moment,” it’s no surprise that a recent survey by the Angus Reid Forum found more Canadians are fearful of a nuclear attack.

 

A survey of over 1,500 Canadians conducted in September found 55 per cent believe the prospect of nuclear war is “very” or “fairly” serious. That’s a marked increase from the 36 per cent of Canadians who said the concerns were serious in November 2016 — a 19 percentage point increase in 10 months.

 

The survey also notes that that women were more likely than men (64 per cent vs. 45 per cent) to believe that nuclear war is a serious concern.

 

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the tensions between North Korea and the U.S. “very scary for everyone.”

Oct 18, 2017

In this episode, the CAF bids farewell to the Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada, also, some insights from John Mannarino, Vanguard’s latest Game Changer and changes to the civilian leadership of the Department of National Defence. 

 

Show Notes:  

General Jonathan Vance, Chief of the Defence Staff, and the CAF community bid farewell to His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada, during an official ceremony on Wednesday, September 27, 2017, at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum.  

In appreciation of his outstanding support and dedicated service to the Canadian Armed Forces, the ceremony consisted of military honours including a CF-18 flypast; a 21-gun salute and a 100-person Guard of Honour.  

His Excellency served as the CAF Commander-in-Chief for seven years. During his appointment, the Governor General made it a priority to support military members and their families through various initiatives and activities. 

 

DND 

Last Friday, the Prime Minister announced upcoming changes to the civilian leadership of the Department of National Defence, an organization that is absolutely critical to the success of the Canadian Armed Forces. These changes include a new Deputy Minister, Senior Associate Deputy Minister, and Associate Deputy Minister. 

Jody Thomas – currently the Senior Associate Deputy Minister – will be promoted Deputy Minister of National Defence effective October 23rd. Jody’s background as Commissioner of the Coast Guard and as a member of the Reserve Force, coupled with her passionate approach to supporting those in uniform and her commitment to building a culture of respect and dignity within the Defence Team, ensure that we continue to have the right leadership within the Department of National Defence. 

Bill Matthews, currently Comptroller General of Canada, will step into the role of Senior Associate Deputy Minister. Bill’s financial expertise and breadth of experience will be invaluable as we implement the new defence policy. 

Gordon Venner, currently our Assistant Deputy Minister of Policy, will be promoted Associate Deputy Minister. I have long valued Gord’s commitment to the Department, his expertise and advice, and am confident he will serve well in his new role. 

 

Game Changer 

Meet John Mannarino, Vanguard’s latest Game Changer. John is the President of Mannarino Systems & Software Inc. About 18 years ago, he started out in the defence industry as a control system engineer at a gas turbine engine OEM in Montreal. 

His first seven years were spent on engineering which included design, analysis, modeling, testing, and certification. “I loved the nature of the products we worked on – high-tech and aerospace,” said Mannarino. “This was great technical training – I enjoyed the work quite a bit.” 

With this experience, John decided to try something different. He began consulting for a US-based company developing aerospace controls systems. “After a couple of years of proving myself, opportunities developed to handle larger projects and I took them on.” He eventually expanded the company to multiple customers and started branching out to include other engineering services. 

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