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Mackay helicopter airlift 'under guise' of training by ferujkll sdff
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Mackay helicopter airlift 'under guise' of training |
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"So, when the guy who's fishing at the fishing hole next to theminister sees the big yellow helicopter arrive and decides to usehis cell phone to video the minister getting on board and post iton YouTube, who will be answering the mail on that one :)," wroteCol. Bruce Ploughman, director of Canada Combined AerospaceOperations Centre at 1 Canadian Air Division headquarters inWinnipeg, adding a typographical symbol for a happy face at theend. "If we are tasked to do this we of course will comply given thepotential for negative press though, I would likely recommendagainst it, especially in view of the fact that the Air Forcereceives (or at least used to) regular ATIs specifically targettingtravel on CF aircraft by ministers," continued Ploughman in theemails released following the Star's access to information requestand also obtained by the CBC. A military search and rescue helicopter, one of three based inGander, was eventually dispatched to pick MacKay up from the remotefishing lodge.
Controversy arose when it was revealed this fall that MacKay hadtaken the flight, at a cost of several thousand dollars, whilevacationing with friends so he could catch a flight to London, Ont.for a government announcement. Speaking during question period in the House of Commons Sept. 22, MacKay said the flight was forwork, not pleasure. Military Cormorant helicopters are based in Gander, centralNewfoundland. CBC "I was in fact in Gander in July of 2010 on a personal visit withfriends that I paid for.
Three days into the visit I participatedin a search and rescue demonstration with 103 squadron 9 WingGander. I shortened my stay by a day to take part in thatdemonstration," he said. The emails also document concerns over the proposed landing area,which was too small for a Cormorant. Officials decided MacKay wouldhave to be hoisted out of the area because the helicopter couldn'tland.
MacKay's office confirmed that he was hoisted out, and that it wasthat hoist that was the search and rescue demonstration he laterreferred to in question period. 'Mutual gain' from demonstration Thursday in the House of Commons, MacKay again defended the flight. "I said before I was leaving personal time to go back to work earlyand before doing so took part in a search and rescue exercise thatwe had been trying to arrange for some time," MacKay said. "That in fact happened. It's been confirmed by [Canadian Forcesofficial spokesman] Brig.-Gen.
Bedard, who stated 'the mutual gainwas realized in the sense that we had been looking to showcase theCormorant's abilities and the search and rescue capabilities of theCanadian Forces to the minister'," MacKay said. But the original email sent the morning of July 6 detailing therequest for "helicopter airlift" did not mention a search andrescue exercise. In fact, documents show officials first considered other militaryaircraft for the task, but decided upon one of the Gander-basedCormorant helicopters, which were closest to MacKay's position. TheGander Cormorants are responsible for Atlantic search and rescue.
The emails show MacKay's political staff intervened to try topersuade defence officials to land the Cormorant, arguing it hadbeen done at that location previously. A spokesman for MacKay said his office has already answered allquestions on the issue. "I can't control other people's comments," Jay Paxton said inreference to the officials' emails. "Any previous flights in thearea were not related to personal time.". I am Luggage Cart writer, reports some information about rolex explorer watch , abalone shell beads.
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