# Who gets more tours?



## cocoa (2 Mar 2004)

I went to see a PSO the other week and he told me that combat arms trades go on more tours than service trades, in the regs.  Is this true? 
I was under the impression that it was the service traded that go on tours more than combat arms. Can someone straighten this out for me?

Thank U very much, I appreciate any help


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## Righty (2 Mar 2004)

depends on a lot of things.... ALOT


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## Paul F (2 Mar 2004)

From what I have heard, infantrymen make up a large percentage of any deployed force. After all, they are the ones providing security for the local population, the bases, and anything else that needs security. I heard once that infantrymen have been deployed on average every 2 years in recent years. However, service trades still get deployed overseas.


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## Jungle (2 Mar 2004)

> Originally posted by cocoa:
> [qb] I went to see a PSO the other week and he told me that combat arms trades go on more tours than service trades, in the regs.  Is this true?
> [/qb]


Not necessarily. There are a lot more bayonets than any other trade, so some technical trades do go on more tours than combat Arms. Now you have to choose depending on what you want: do you want to go on tours and spend the vast majority of it on the camp, or do you want to be on the ground at the tip of the spear...


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## devil39 (2 Mar 2004)

> Originally posted by cocoa:
> [qb] I went to see a PSO the other week and he told me that combat arms trades go on more tours than service trades, in the regs.  Is this true?
> I was under the impression that it was the service traded that go on tours more than combat arms. Can someone straighten this out for me?
> 
> Thank U very much, I appreciate any help      [/qb]


It really depends on how you want to spend your life, what your motivation is, and where your interests lie.

Some Infantrymen can pull three tours in three years.  That is the exception. What you can be assured is that as an infantryman you will be an the very pointy end of the CF stick.

There are trades in the CF that will deploy far more often over a prolonged period of time.  Other than Engineers, most of these people will be in supporting CS or CSS roles.  

It really depends on what you want to do with your life.  Gain a whole lot of medals, or gain some at the pointy end of the stick.


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## George Wallace (2 Mar 2004)

> Originally posted by devil39:
> There are trades in the CF that will deploy far more often over a prolonged period of time.  Other than Engineers, most of these people will be in supporting CS or CSS roles.


Don‘t let any Sigs hear you say that!


GW


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## Padraig OCinnead (2 Mar 2004)

Boys,

What are ya talking about? You‘re using e-mail right now, sending it along computers, out phones lines or digital and maybe even using satellites to take part in this little topic. What do every single tour that Canada has ever done have in common?

That‘s right. COMMUNICATIONS... They are the guys who have been  in country already for about 72-96 hours before any other trade steps off the plane. The Old Man wants to talk to his OC‘s, or maybe even his boss as soon as he steps off the plane and Sigs are the ones who make that happen.VVV

Slainte,


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## Padraig OCinnead (3 Mar 2004)

Sigs would also provide relay comms (2-3 man dets) in event of Ops in areas that would inhibit ideal communications such as very high mountainous terrain. They would be in the immediate vicinity to give the gravel-techs the comms they need to do their jobs They need to pay attention to the way the infantry guys operate and hopefully pick up tips from them as sigs don‘t get good in-depth war-fighting training that infantry guys for a living. But I may be a bit biased.


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## Armymedic (3 Mar 2004)

I‘d have to agree to P.O. 

Of the CSS, and support trades here are some of the ones who do alot of tours/overseas tasks...

1. Sigs (primarily rad ops, but a few techs, sigs guys can elaborate)
2. MP‘s (embassy postings all over the world)
3. Int (same)
4 MSE ops (both embassies and regular tours because supplies must role)
5. Postal techs - need I say more?
6. The most tours are EGS Tech (construction Engineer trades of all sort) who operate and maintain camp systems, there are very few in the CF and hence the reasoning for civilian contractors to do the same job. I know a couple at 2 CER and they had 6 and 7 diferent tour medals (more tours cause there were a couple numbers as well).


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## CanadianSIG (3 Mar 2004)

Yep - I can confirm - SIGS (of all types RadOps, Linemen and RadTechs)  are constantly being requested at our reserve unit. 

It seems that if you want to go and have the time then it won‘t be long. You have to have your 3‘s at a minimum and your security clearances but you name the Op and SIGS are there... as a reserve unit we have guys in Bosnia, Afghanistan, Golan Heights, (edited for OPSEC) and more. 

You also will not just be sitting in the compound running the comms centre - you will have the opportunity to be out with the patrols (manning radio), etc, etc.

SIGS are one of the undermanned MOC‘s right now - which means a very high demand.


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## Arctic Acorn (4 Mar 2004)

90% right, Armymedic...

Sigs deploy probably more than any other trade, but Int and MP‘s are often deployed on tours in decent sized groups (relative to their trade-sizes). On the Int side, reservists deploy quite a lot to make up for the lack of available reg guys. We‘re a super small trade, so lotsa guys I know have quite the gongshow going on. 

As for embassy gigs, they‘re actual postings lasting 3-4 years, and not considered ‘tours‘. They do get an SSM out of it, though.


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## meni0n (4 Mar 2004)

What do Int reservists or reg force guys actually do on a embassy gig or a tour.


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## Arctic Acorn (4 Mar 2004)

Nothing I care to comment on via these means. Just trying to CMA, and I‘m unsure what‘s safe to bab about, frankly. 

If you‘re curious about the branch, you can read a bit about what we do at: www.intbranch.org

Additionally, feel free to snag any hatbadges you see and ask them in person. Normally, we have no problems talking about our jobs in person, but again, I have no idea who reads this. As a jimmy, I‘m sure you see us in the CP from time to time. 

We‘re easy to spot...look for the guy with the tinfoil-lined helmet, and magazine pouches full of talc-markers.


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## CanadianSIG (5 Mar 2004)

Way to go Acorn!!

Wish I could import you down here to teach a few folks about beadwindows...

See yah in the CP‘s...


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## D-n-A (5 Mar 2004)

you guys are forgetting the cooks, veh techs an weapon techs,(an other trades)

whervere the troops go, cooks go, somone has to feed ‘em

where the vehicles go, veh techs go to fix them when  they break down


etc


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## Infanteer (6 Mar 2004)

> whervere the troops go, cooks go, somone has to feed ‘em


We got rations for that....



> where the vehicles go, veh techs go to fix them when they break down


Won‘t argue with you there, the EME‘s on my tour were a great group of guys, worked as hard as the troops.


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## willy (6 Mar 2004)

Canadian Sig:

Speaking of beadwindows, maybe you should watch how you‘re shooting your own mouth off right now.  Ever read any of the Op Athena news releases?  Ever wonder why they don‘t mention the specific location of a certain support base?

Beadwindow 1, you dummy.


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## Franko (6 Mar 2004)

Willy...

He hasn‘t spouted any OPSEC stuff yet.   

Regards


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## willy (6 Mar 2004)

Uh... yeah actually, he has.  Just because the cat‘s already out of the bag pretty much forces wide with regards to the location of the place that I‘m talking about doesn‘t mean that the whole world has to find out via a public internet forum.  

I have more than a passing familiarity with the place in question, and I know what the troops who are deployed there are told with regards to disclosing its location.  Like I said, maybe it‘s a poorly kept secret, but that doesn‘t mean we should just say to h*** with even trying to do things properly.


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## Franko (6 Mar 2004)

True enough Willy...

‘nuff said

Regards


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## Thompson_JM (6 Mar 2004)

> Originally posted by Infanteer:
> [QB]
> 
> 
> ...


I dunno... though i cant say I know what the food on an overseas tour is like. given the choice between rats and Hot meals from the kitchen tent on an exercise, I‘ll take the hot meals any day of the week. 

anyways, im gonna assume you were half jokeing about the Rations anyways.


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## George Wallace (6 Mar 2004)

> Originally posted by Cpl Thompson:
> anyways, im gonna assume you were half jokeing about the Rations anyways.       [/QB]


No half joking to it.  Cooks do not go out to OPs or Check Points, nor do they go on patrols as a rule.  Hard Rations are the only thing some of the troops will see for weeks at at time.

GW


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## CanadianSIG (6 Mar 2004)

Willy,

IF and I say again IF, I was aware of any sensitivity regarding the place in question it wouldn‘t have been mentioned - but this is the first I have heard.

Enough said.


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## Thompson_JM (6 Mar 2004)

> Originally posted by George Wallace:
> [qb]
> 
> 
> ...


You know what i totally forgot about those.. My apologies... 

man it really is true what they say, "In the Rear with the Gear"


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## willy (6 Mar 2004)

Canadian Sig:

Fair enough.  Like I said, it‘s a fairly poorly kept secret these days, and that isn‘t really your fault.


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## onecat (6 Mar 2004)

What about FCS techs.  How often are they out tours?


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## CanadianSIG (7 Mar 2004)

willy 

It makes me wonder why it‘s never been mentioned at any briefing - I agree with you - if we‘re going to attempt to do things the correct way then the info needs to be passed on to everyone... this might be a unit thing...

thanks for the heads up     .


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## willy (7 Mar 2004)

It makes me wonder too.  Actually, I doubt that it‘s a unit thing.  The whole CF seems to know these days, which isn‘t neccessarily so terrible, except for the fact that nobody is told that they aren‘t supposed to be telling everyone else.  There have been, from what I‘ve seen, increased efforts to get everyone on the same page lately, but that didn‘t stop, for example, the guys who were on my deployment support briefing from bringing their wives and children with them.  Actually man, I should probably have been a little more understanding of your not knowing that this was all so "hush hush".  It‘s understandable, when you look at it, and moreover, it‘s actually more than just a little stupid of the army to be dealing with this big secret in such a piss poor manner.  

Whatever, lets leave the whole thing at that.


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## Arctic Acorn (8 Mar 2004)

Hey CanadianSIG...

Cough up a fin code/TAN #, and I‘ll be down in a jiffy...6 months of 40 below weather up here is making me squirrely (over and above trade requirements...)

As for beadwindows, I had no farking clue what you were on about...thought it was either a codeword for ‘something‘ or an as yet unheard of Microsoft program...   

Don‘t spend a lot of time with the NCS, I guess.


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