Information Sheet
Military flying training Goose Bay - Labrador
Low Level Training
Allied nations continue to have a requirement for low-level training. Both NATO and the United Nations have
expressed the need to retain a capability to respond to the increasing international instability and threats
posed by regional conflicts. Tactical air forces provide a versatile element of any multinational response.
Radar and anti-aircraft weaponry is readily available to any potential aggressor and represent a major and
continuing threat in operating tactical fighter aircraft. Therefore, air forces must often rely on low-level
training to ensure the efficiency and the safety of their crews. Opportunities for realistic training over
western Europe are limited due to high population densities, air traffic congestion and the prevalence of man-made
obstructions.
For more than a decade, flying training at Goose Bay has averaged 6,000 low level flights per year. There may
eventually be a gradual and limited change in the level and type of activity to permit additional air forces
to participate and to make the training more operationally viable and cost-effective.
A practice target area of 4 nautical mile radius is the only location where any "inert" practice devices are released
from aircraft. Mock targets are located at various sites throughout the training area on which practice attacks are
conducted, using only on-board cameras to record their accuracy.
Environmental Protection
An independent Environmental Assessment Panel conducted a public review of military flying activities to consider its effects on
the ecology, health and socio-economic integrity of the region. Public hearings were held in the communities most directly affected
by the project. Aboriginal groups, interested parties and technical experts in many fields, representing different points of view,
were able to participate in the process.
The Government of Canada accepted essentially every recommendation made by the Panel in 1995. The training area was
reconfigured in a manner that provides more flexibility to better conduct training and implement environmental
protection measures that reflect changing seasonal and cyclical activity patterns on the ground. The Government
established an independent Institute for Environmental Monitoring and Research which is now monitoring the effects
of the training activity. The Institute also reviews the suitability of mitigation measures designed and implemented
by the Department of National Defence (DND) to minimize the potential for adverse effects on the environment of the
region. Aboriginal groups, wildlife agencies and other experts participate directly in establishing the Institute's
research priorities, coordinating studies and assessing results.
Environmental management practices are continuously reviewed to ensure compliance with commitments on safeguarding the
environment. Much of this effort involves measures to prevent disturbance due to noise. Defence staffs identify and
monitor locations judged to be sensitive due to the nature of human and wildlife activity on the ground and they close
these sections to aircraft traffic. In cooperation with provincial and federal wildlife officials, and through the use of
satellite collars and other means, they track the positions and monitor the condition of caribou and various other wildlife species.
Defence officials also track the movements of military aircraft to ensure that the training is conducted in compliance with
regulations and environmental restrictions. This information is further used to conduct ongoing scientific research and to
validate effects predictions.
The intensity of noise disturbance is a prime concern to DND and to many people in the region. Since the training area is quite
large, with relatively few locations of human activity, the possibility of being overflown is minimal. On average, less than
3% of the entire training area is subjected to one or more overflight per day.
Aboriginal Concerns
There are no aboriginal settlements within the training area, although groups and individuals may travel or camp in a number of
locations during certain periods of the year. The whole of the training area is within territory that is being claimed by at least
three separate aboriginal groups. Some of them have expressed opposition to military training due to concerns related to the environment,
their traditional way of life, and land claims issues. These are all being addressed through various avenues, including the environmental
Institute, continued DND efforts to maintain a constructive dialogue and the accelerated pace of comprehensive claims negotiations
involving federal, provincial and aboriginal authorities.
National Defence will continue to establish workable arrangements, which recognize the interests of all parties. The Department
also seeks to enhance aboriginal participation in economic opportunities and to protect traditional pursuits such as resource
harvesting activities.
Socio-Economic Considerations
The 8600 residents of Happy Valley-Goose Bay represent nearly one third of the total population of Labrador. Over the last fifty years, the
Base has continued to play a major economic role in the region, providing employment for a large local civilian workforce. Since 1998, a
private sector company provides most of the on-base support services. Several hundred other indirect jobs in the community depend on the
economic activity generated by the military presence. Annual expenditures on recurring personnel, operations and maintenance costs at the
Base amount to approximately $90 million, most of which is paid by the foreign military who train in Goose Bay. All this provides the basis
for future economic diversification and for the level of social services currently enjoyed by people in this remote region of Canada.
Economic benefits are not limited to the Labrador area. A considerable number of indirect jobs exist in other provinces due to the
military training in Goose Bay. For example, in Québec alone, nearly $50 million of revenues are generated annually by this activity.
Additional information is available on the INTERNET at: www.goosebay.org
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