Four local Army Reservists with the Cape Breton Highlanders fit snugly in a “Jiffy Jeep” that was on display Saturday at the downtown waterfront. The vehicle is actually a 1952 Willis Jeep that would have been used post-war. It is called a Jiffy Jeep because it could be dis-assembled and re-assembled in record time if it needed to be flown into an area of war. In the back, from left, are: Pte. Angus Donovan, North Sydney; and Pte. Johnathon Campbell, Westmount. In front are Cpl. Jonathan Morales of Sydney; and Pte. Neil Kidd of North Sydney. All were taking part in the military training exercise. Photo by ROSEMARY GODIN/CAPE BRETON POSTArticle contentExercise Noble Lion attracted attention on the Sydney waterfront over the weekend for the first-ever joint Canadian Armed Forces Naval and Army Reserves training exercise held on Cape Breton Island. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.Subscribe now to access this story and more:Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsSUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES.Subscribe or sign in to your account to continue your reading experience.Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsRegister to unlock more articles.Create an account or sign in to continue your reading experience.Access additional stories every monthShare your thoughts and join the conversation in our commenting communityGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorArticle contentBoth the command post at the Coast Guard Academy in Westmount and a staging location in downtown at the waterfront were hives of activity as Reservists took on roles during a mock disaster setting. Article contentArticle contentArticle content“Exercise Noble Lion is a scenario where potentially, government could ask the military to assist — we’ve done it in the past,” said Capt. (Naval) Martin Fluet, Atlantic regional commander of Naval Reserves. “Obviously, being the Naval Reserve, the specialty here is boats and diving.” Article content A training exercise simulating domestic operations took place in Sydney Harbour over the weekend under the command of Capt. (Naval) Martin Fluet, Atlantic Regional Commander, Naval Reserve. He is shown on the dock at the Canada Coast Guard Academy in Westmount. The exercise was undertaken to ensure the Canadian Armed Forces and its reservists are well prepared with the necessary skills to assist local communities in the event of a natural disaster. Photo by ROSEMARY GODIN/CAPE BRETON POSTArticle content‘DIFFERENT AGENCIES TOGETHER’Article contentThe Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) officially joined the Department of National Defence (DND) on Sept. 2, moving from Fisheries and Oceans Canada to become a civilian Special Operating Agency within DND to strengthen maritime security and sovereignty, especially in the Arctic. Article contentFluet said one of the aims of the Sydney training exercise was to get different agencies together — CCG, Naval and Army Reserves and National Defence etc. — and see how the command and control work together. Article content“Putting a few government agencies together to help the population will require some sort of co-ordination,” he said.Article contentArticle content Three men taking part in the Naval Army reservists training exercise over the weekend in Sydney Harbour couldn’t complain about the weather. Shown above, from left, are: Sailor Third Class (S3) Joshua Elbourne; Master Sailor (MS) Zachary (Zach) Barnes; and Sailor First Class Wyatt Carling. This is the first time a defence training exercise involving the Coast Guard Academy was undertaken in Sydney. Photo by CONTRIBUTEDArticle contentHe said the idea of coming to the Canadian Coast Guard Academy in Westmount was timely because of the recent changes. Article content“Now that we are under the defence team umbrella together, we thought coming here would be a great opportunity to foster this relationship,” Fluet said.Article contentOwen Fitzgerald, Cape Breton representative for the Canadian Forces Liaison Council (CFLC) was able to participate in some of the training on the water and said he was impressed with the skills he saw. Article content Cape Breton Canadian Forces Liaison Council (CFLC) representative, Owen Fitzgerald of Sydney, left, was happy to get a close up view of the past weekend’s Canadian Armed Forces Naval and Army Reserves training exercise in Sydney Harbour. He is seen above with Capt. (Naval) Martin Fluet, Atlantic Regional Commander, Naval Reserve of Halifax. Fitzgerald says the exercise was a great opportunity to showcase the harbour to the Navy and the rest of the country and a great opportunity for young Cape Bretoners to learn more about career opportunities in the Canadian Military and the Reserve. Photo by CONTRIBUTEDArticle content‘MEDICAL EMERGENCY’Article content“At one point, we must have been doing 60 kilometre-per-hour zooming along just out from the new NSCC campus, and the boat makes a series of very sharp turns,” Fitzgerald said. Article content“One of the crew pretends to have struck their head and now we have a medical emergency. We had a medic onboard and another, using a satellite phone to contact the operations centre reported the accident. They used GPS to pinpoint exactly where we are.”
Reservists ship-shape and ready to roll after Cape Breton exercise
