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For the answers to your general questions about the Department of National Defence (DND)/Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), please refer to the following topics.
Goals of the DND and the CAF
DND/CAF employment opportunities
DND/CAF organization
CAF leadership and personnel
Contacting CAF members
CAF activities in Canada and abroad
CAF tradition and heritage
Service information
Doing business with DND/CAF
The fundamental goal of DND and the CAF is to protect Canada, and Canadian interests and values, while contributing to international peace and security.
The CAF defends Canada by:
The CAF contributes to the defence of North America by:
The CAF contributes to international security by:
To enrol in the CAF, you must:
For details, and for more information related to enrolment, such as information on career opportunities with the CAF, terms of service and more, please visit the Recruiting website, http://www.forces.ca/en/home, or call the Canadian Forces Recruiting Centre at 1-800-856-8488.
The CAF has more than 80 occupations, and many involve job skills that are highly valued in both military and civilian life.For detailed information on military occupations, read through the “Jobs” section of the Recruiting website, http://www.forces.ca/en/home, or contact the Canadian Forces Recruiting Centre at 1-800-856-8488.
If you want the CAF to put you through school, you must be qualified and prepared to serve in the CAF both while you study and after graduation.
The CAF has a variety of education programs for officers and non-commissioned members. In some, officer candidates and serving officers attend the Royal Military College of Canada or a civilian university to earn a degree; in others, non-commissioned members in highly specialized technical occupations complete college diploma courses. For details, read through the “Paid Education” section of the Recruiting website, http://www.forces.ca/en/home, or contact the Canadian Forces Recruiting Centre at 1-800-856-8488.
Civilian employees of DND are Public Servants recruited through the Public Service Commission of Canada in accordance with the requirements of the Public Service Employment Act. DND civilian job opportunities are posted on the Public Service Commission website: http://jobs-emplois.gc.ca/index-eng.htm. You may write to DNDRecruitment-RecrutementMDN@forces.gc.ca to inquire about DND civilian job opportunities in your area.
DND and the CAF share a unique relationship in the Government of Canada; DND/CAF have complementary roles to play in:
In most respects, DND is an organization like other departments of the Government of Canada. It is established by a statute, the National Defence Act, which sets out the Minister of National Defence’s responsibilities, including the Minister’s responsibility for both the Department and the CAF. In other words, DND exists to carry out the work assigned to the Minister of National Defence, so the department's relationship with the CAF is that of a support system.
Under the National Defence Act, the CAF are an entity separate and distinct from the Department. The CAF are headed by the Chief of the Defence Staff, Canada’s senior serving military officer, and are comprised of the Royal Canadian Navy, the Canadian Army, and the Royal Canadian Air Force. The Chief of the Defence Staff is responsible for the conduct of military operations of all three components of the CAF, and to ensure that the CAF is always ready to carry out the tasks that Parliament assigns through the Minister of National Defence.
The Royal Canadian Navy is the maritime component of the CAF. It protects Canada’s interests by:
The Royal Canadian Navy is headed by the Chief of Maritime Staff who, as commander of the Navy, maintains combat-capable, multipurpose maritime forces designed for the above-mentioned duties.
The Chief of Maritime Staff may also be referred to as the Navy Chief of Staff.
The Canadian Army is the land component of the CAF. It protects Canada’s interests by:
The Canadian Army is headed by the Chief of the Land Staff who, as commander of the Army, maintains combat-capable, multipurpose land forces for the above-mentioned duties.
The Chief of Land Staff may also be referred to as the Army Chief of Staff.
The Royal Canadian Air Force is the air component of the CAF. It protects Canada’s interests by:
The Royal Canadian Air Force is headed by the Chief of Air Staff who, as commander of the Air Force, maintains a combat-capable, multipurpose Air Force for the above-mentioned duties.
The Chief of Air Staff may also be referred to as the Air Force Chief of Staff.
Look at the sleeves of the uniform tunic (the jacket of the dress uniform) and the shoulders of other uniform clothing (shirt, sweater, windbreaker or overcoat).
Officers up to the rank of Colonel or Captain (Navy) have narrow gold rings around the cuffs of the uniform tunic and gold bars on the shoulders of other uniform clothing. General officers and flag officers wear a single wide gold ring on the cuffs of the uniform tunic and maple leaves on the shoulders of all uniform clothing.
Non-commissioned members up to the rank of Sergeant or Petty Officer 2nd Class wear chevrons on the sleeves of the uniform tunic and on the shoulders of other uniform clothing. Warrant Officers and senior Petty Officers wear crowns on their cuffs of the uniform tunic and on the shoulders of other uniform clothing.
We are the only department where military members work alongside civilians (non-military members). The Defence Team is comprised of over 100,000 employees, including:
The Governor General is the representative of the Queen in Canada. As such, the Governor General of Canada is also the Commander-in-Chief of Canada, and therefore plays a significant role in encouraging excellence and recognizing the important role of Canada's military at home and abroad.
As Commander-in-Chief, the Governor General performs many duties, including:
Read more about the Governor General in our “About Us” section or visit http://www.gg.ca/index.aspx?lan=eng
The Minister of National Defence is a federal Cabinet Minister who has management and direction of the CAF and all matters relating to National Defence.
The National Defence Act sets out the Minister’s responsibilities, which include:
Read more about the Minister of National Defence in our “About Us” section.
It is the role of the Deputy Minister to articulate a corporate vision for the Department.
The Deputy Minister of National Defence is the Minister's most senior civilian advisor on all departmental affairs of concern to the central agencies of the federal government (such as the Privy Council Office, Treasury Board and the Public Service Commission). The Deputy Minister of National Defence’s responsibilities include:
Read more about the Deputy Minister of National Defence in our “About Us” section.
The Chief of the Defence Staff is the senior member of the CAF, and the senior military advisor to the Minister of National Defence. The Chief of the Defence Staff has direct responsibility for the command, control and administration of the CAF. This means the Chief of the Defence Staff is responsible for:
Read more about the Chief of the Defence Staff in our “About Us” section.
Open messages to CAF members serving overseas can be posted electronically through our website. Please look for the Canadian Forces Message Board.
To send a letter to a general address (addressed to "Any Soldier", "Any Sailor" or "Any Air Force Member"), use a postcard and one of the addresses on the Canadian Forces Message Board on our website.
To send personal mail to a specific CAF member, please ensure you follow the instructions, and comply with the guidelines, determined by the Canadian Forces Postal Services. Look for more information on the Canadian Forces Message Board on our website or send your inquiries regarding the Canadian Forces Postal Services to: postal_question_postale@forces.gc.ca.
The best way to find a veteran is through a veterans' organization. Canada's largest veterans' organization is the Royal Canadian Legion, which publishes Legion Magazine, where you will find several public service columns including "Last Post", an obituary column that is now backed by a searchable database on the Legion website, and "Lost Trails", which appears only in the print version of the magazine. For instructions on placing a "Lost Trails" notice, pick up a copy of Legion Magazine, or contact the editor by fax at (613) 591-0146 or by mail at the following address:
Legion Magazine
86 Aird Place
Kanata, ON K2L 0A1
Canada
Please visit http://legionmagazine.com/en/ for more information on Legion Magazine.
More information about veterans may be found on the Veterans Affairs Canada web site too. Please visit http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/.
In 1993, the CAF assumed responsibility for the conduct of counter-terrorism operations, always acting under the authority of the Solicitor General of Canada. The CAF unit assigned to this task is called Joint Task Force 2. All other information about Joint Task Force 2 is classified.
Canadian Joint Operations Command (CJOC) is responsible for conducting full-spectrum CAF operations at home, on the continent of North America, and around the world. You may find information on current, recurring and past CAF operations in the CJOC section of our website.
The regular duties of CAF members serving in Canada range from administration, health care, construction and maintenance to search-and-rescue operations, patrolling our airspace and territorial waters, and maintaining readiness for combat duties. CAF members in Canada also perform tasks assigned at the request of civil authorities; for example, supporting drug-interdiction operations by law-enforcement agencies, and conducting rescue and recovery operations in the aftermath of major natural disasters.
While Canada does not face any direct military threats, instability in other parts of the world can threaten:
The CAF of today draws on the traditions and heritage of colonial militias dating back to the earliest French and British settlements in North America. The oldest CAF units are in the army Reserve, and the army uses two criteria to determine the age of a unit: the date of its formation as a regiment, and the length of its unbroken service from that date.
The Regular Force (originally called the Permanent Active Militia) began on October 20, 1871 with the formation of two independent garrison batteries of artillery designated A Battery and B Battery. These units were formed in response to the British government's decision to withdraw most of its forces from Canada after Confederation, which left the Dominion government in need of professional soldiers to maintain the armament of Canada's two great fortresses: Fort Henry in Kingston, Ontario and the Citadel in Québec City. Regular infantry and cavalry regiments soon followed, formed in the 1880s as schools of instruction for the "Non-Permanent Active Militia", or Reserve.
Canada's navy originated with the Naval Service Act of 1910. The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) acquired its first warships, the cruisers HMCS Niobe and HMCS Rainbow, in the same year. The Canadian air force was formed in 1920 as the Canadian Air Force (a Reserve organization), and received Permanent Force status and Royal designation (RCAF) on April 1, 1924.
On February 1, 1968, the Canadian Forces Reorganization Act took effect, amalgamating the Canadian Army, the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force to form the CAF as we know it today.
No. The Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation manages the Canadian Museum of Civilization and the Canadian War Museum. The Canadian War Museum is located at 1 Vimy Place, Ottawa, Ontario, K1R 1C2. The general information number is 1-800-555-5621. Please visit the museum's website for more information: http://www.warmuseum.ca/home/.
The Directorate of History and Heritage, which is part of National Defence Headquarters, is a good source of that kind of information. The Inquiries Section at the Directorate of History and Heritage has one Historical Research Officer and a staff of volunteers who are kept very busy answering questions from the public. To have your research done by the Inquiries staff, send your request in writing either by fax to (613) 990-8579 or by courier mail to the following address:
Inquiries
Directorate of History and Heritage
National Defence Headquarters
101 Colonel By Drive
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0K2
Response time varies by the type and subject of the inquiry, and by the researchers' workload.
To conduct your own research, you may visit the Directorate of History and Heritage on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30p.m. at the following location:
Colonel C.P. Stacey Building
2429 Holly Lane
Ottawa, Ontario
The best way to find out what a specific unit did at war is to read the official histories of Canada's participation in war, and a history of the unit if one exists. Canada has a rich literature of regimental and corps histories dating back more than a century, and more recent historians have also focused on individual warships, Air Force squadrons, and bases and their supporting communities. For a comprehensive guide to this literature, see The Canadian Military Experience, 1867-1995: A Bibliography / Bibliographie de la vie militaire au Canada, 1867-1995 by Owen A. Cooke (Ottawa, 1997, ISBN 0-660-60164-8).
The most detailed source of information about a specific unit deployed in a theatre of operations is its war diary (for all Army units and formations, and post-1968 Air Force squadrons), log (for HMC ships) or Operational Record Book (for Royal Canadian Air Force squadrons). The original file copies of these documents are held by the Directorate of History and Heritage until they are no longer required for research; at that time, they are transferred to the Library and Archives Canada, where they are available to the public.
Library and Archives Canada is the federal government department that preserves and makes accessible the documentary heritage of Canada. It also serves as the continuing memory of the Government of Canada and its institutions. Please visit its website for more information http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/Pages/home.aspx or call 1-866-578-7777.
War diaries from the First World War and Second World War may be viewed in the consultation room of the Library and Archives Canada, at 395 Wellington Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A ON3. Some of the war diary collection may be made available through interlibrary loan.
The Directorate of History and Heritage holds microfilm copies of the Air Force Operational Record Books, which are available to researchers on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30p.m. at the following location:
Colonel C.P. Stacey Building
2429 Holly Lane
Ottawa, Ontario
No. DND/CAF clothing stores stock only insignia in current use.
Collecting military memorabilia is such a popular hobby that people all over the country sell badges, buttons and articles of uniform from every period of Canadian history. You are most likely to find these items sold by dealers in antiques and collectibles, many of whom operate on the Internet.
Service records of retired or released CAF members are kept at DND for only a few years before they are sent to Library and Archives Canada. So if you recently retired or have recently been released from the CAF, and suspect your records might not yet be held at Library and Archives Canada, you may contact the DND Directorate of Military Careers Administration to obtain your records by dialling 1-866-240-6726. However, most military records may be obtained through Library and Archives Canada, including at the following Library and Archives sub-site: http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/genealogy/index-e.html. You may call Library and Archives by dialing 1-866-578-7777 for assistance. Library and Archives Canada is the federal government department that preserves and makes accessible the documentary heritage of Canada. It also serves as the continuing memory of the Government of Canada and its institutions. As such, Library and Archives Canada holds extensive collections of military records.
Your relative's CAF service is documented in his or her military personnel records (also known as service records), which are available at Library and Archives Canada at the following sub-site: http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/genealogy/index-e.html. You may call Library and Archives by dialing 1-866-578-7777 for assistance.
Please note that access to military personnel records maintained by Library and Archives Canada is governed by the Privacy Act, which is intended to protect the privacy of individuals with respect to personal information about themselves held by a government institution.
For information useful to serving and retired CAF members alike, please contact the CAF Pension Services directly by telephone at 1-800-267-0325 or by e-mail at one of the following addresses:
When making a pension inquiry about detailed information specific to yourself, be prepared to provide the following information:
Help may be obtained through services offered by the CAF and by Veteran Affairs Canada.
CAF Second Career Assistance Network
The CAF offers services which help retiring and recently retired CAF members make the transition to civilian life though the Second Career Assistance Network Programme.
The transition through the Second Career Assistance Network may involve counselling, education and accreditation for a career change. To learn more about the Second Career Assistance Network, please talk to your local Personnel Selection Officer about attending a seminar.
CAF members should access the Second Career Assistance Network early and periodically during their careers. They are strongly encouraged not to wait until their last year of service to take advantage of Second Career Assistance Network services.
New Veterans Transition Advisory Council
Veterans Affairs Canada is partnering with corporate Canada to help releasing CAF personnel and Veterans find civilian jobs. The new Veterans Transition Advisory Council will bring together industry leaders and government with the goal of helping Veterans transition into meaningful jobs in the private sector.
To help support this, Veteran Affairs Canada has created an e-mail address to receive and distribute private sector job opportunities for Veterans: jobs-emplois@vac-acc.gc.ca
Note: The jobs-emplois@vac-acc.gc.ca e-mail address is intended only for accepting and distributing employment opportunities from organizations.
For more information, please call Veteran Affairs Canada toll free at 1-866-522-2122.
All current and former CAF members (Regular and Reserve Force) who have been honourably discharged are eligible for burial in the National Military Cemetery (NMC). Canadian veterans of the First World War, the Second World War and the Korean War, including merchant mariners, are also eligible. For more information, please contact the Manager of the National Military Cemetery by dialing 1-800-883-6084 or by writing to centre@forces.gc.ca.
No. DND and the CAF are not authorized to sell anything to the public.
All military goods and equipment that are declared surplus are turned over to the Crown Assets Distribution Centre for disposal. Visit the Crown Assets Distribution website, http://www.crownassets.pwgsc.gc.ca/mn-eng.cfm, for information on sales events and more.
If you have goods or services to offer to the Government of Canada (which includes DND), visit the Buy and Sell Contracts Canada website, www.buyandsell.gc.ca, for information on government purchasing, and how to contact a materiel manager. For specific information, or to register as a potential supplier, call InfoLine Contracts Canada at (819) 956-3440 or toll-free line at 1-800-811-1148, or write to Client Services at achatsetventes.buyandsell@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca.
An "official" website is a DND/CAF product, created, maintained, authorized and supported by a DND organization (e.g., a branch or directorate) or a CAF unit or formation (e.g., a regiment, a battalion, a ship, a squadron, a wing, a base, a brigade). An official site must comply with all government-wide and departmental policies relevant to publishing in general and the Internet in particular, and the person at the head of the sponsoring organization (Commanding Officer, Director-General, Director) is responsible for the website and all its content. The ownership (Crown or commercial) of the server that hosts the site is irrelevant to its status.
Sites created and maintained by DND employees, CAF members or other individuals associated with DND and the CAF, but not authorized and supported by a DND/CAF organization, are not official websites and must not be presented as such.
With a website, you will be in an excellent position to support the CAF and promote understanding of CAF operations and activities.
The consideration of greatest importance to you, as a user of DND/CAF information, should be information security. Many eyes watch the World Wide Web. Before you post any text or image on your site, ask yourself the following questions:
If you answered "yes" to any of these five questions, do not post the item on your site!
Intellectual property rights are also important. Millions of images and text products are under Crown or other copyright so, for your own sake, read copyright notices carefully, and obey them.
This is where an unwary person could get into trouble. During your DND or CAF career, you will come into contact with a great deal of information that is definitely not for publication. The Access to Information Act forbids publication of certain facts (e.g., equipment specifications, radio frequencies) and information from certain types of documents (e.g., Treasury Board submissions, minutes of some meetings). The Privacy Act requires you to obtain permission from the person concerned to release personal information.
Intellectual property rights are also important. Millions of images and text products are under Crown copyright, and may not be reproduced by a non-government publisher without official permission. Remember, as the owner and maintainer of a website, you are a publisher.
Assess each document and piece of information on its own merits, preferably in consultation with a Public Affairs Officer. If you are still serving, also consult your supervisor.