Capt. Richard Leary of the PPCLI was killed today in the Panjwaii district of Afghanistan when his patrol came under fire. Our thoughts go out to another fallen brother and to his family.

Mike Starker returned to Canada yesterday. Mike became the 83rd Canadian Soldier to die in Afghanistan when he died last Tuesday in southern Afghanistan when his patrol was ambushed.

His family issued a statement saying: “Mike loved being a paramedic with Calgary EMS and loved being a soldier in the Canadian Forces, especially his time in the Canadian Airborne Regiment.”

“Michael died doing what he loved. In his heart, he was a soldier and in his blood, a paramedic. But soldiering wasn’t the only thing that Mike gave his heart to. He gave his heart and soul to his wife, parents, family and friends.”

Mike was a former member of 2 Commando, serving from 1991 to 1995. He left the military to become a Paramedic in Calgary where he grew up. He served as a reservist with 15 Field Ambulance and was on his second tour of Afghanistan when he died.

R.I.P. Jumper…

During a night drop on the 8th of May, 1968, seven troopers drowned in the Ottawa river during what was supposed to be a routine drop onto the Mattawa Plains at CFB Petawawa resulting in the largest single-day loss of life at the base.

If you are near Petawawa this weekend, the Canadian Airborne Association will mark the date with a commemoration service beginning this Sunday at 2:30 p.m. at the Wegner Point monument.

Just a reminder, the Airborne Regiment Association is hosting a 40th Anniversary event in Ottawa on April 12th. The event is open to all past members of the Regiment, those who were in non-jump support roles (1 AB FSSU, 1 AB SSU), past and current jumpers of all “stripes” i.e.: CABC, CFPMD, regular and reserve force jump companies, foreign paratroopers, 1 Can Para, 1 FSSF, Aircrew, White or Red Maple Leaf jumpers.

The Meet & Greet starts at 1700 at the Rideau Canal WO’s and SGT’s Mess, 4 Queen Elizabeth Dr, Ottawa, ON, K2P 2H9. Reservation must be paid by 5 April, so send your cheque or credit card information to the ARAC Kit Shop, 3 – 36 de Varennes, Gatineau  QC  J8T 0B6.

For more information, download one of the following PDFs or contact the Kit Shop.

• 40th Anniversary Information [PDF]
• 40ième Anniversaire Information [PDF]

CAFA will be hosting the annual Airborne Memorial Weekend in Petawawa this year. The weekend includes the Annual General Meeting of CAFA, a dinner dance for CAFA and any interested ARAC members and a re-dedication of the “Into Action” statue which is also known as Iron Mike (or Iron Dick by some) that was formerly at the main gate to CFB Petawawa. The statue was moved to the grounds of the Airborne Forces Museum and will be re-named as the Canadian Airborne Forces Memorial.

For more information, download the Word document with the schedule of events and a registration form.

• Memorial Weekend Registration Form

Although promoted as “The Canadian Airborne Regiment Reunion 2008″, the Organizing Committee and members of The Edmonton Airborne Social Club is extending an Airborne Brotherhood welcome for all to attend this reunion. It is strong emphasized that this reunion is open to all past member of the Regiment, members who were in support roles, current members of the Regular Force Parachute Companies, past and current members of the Canadian Airborne Centre, Canadian Forces Parachute Maintenance Depot, aircrews who provided airlift during the past forty years, all members of 1 Canadian Parachute Association, Allied Paratroopers; troopers from the old Parachute Companies, instructors from CJATC and all other paratroopers, whether or not they have served in an active para role.

For more information, download the following Word documents;

• Registration Form
• Info Package
• Reunion Contacts

In the last couple of months, there has been a flood of spam messages in the photo albums.  I have cleaned them up and Bobby has offered to keep an eye on them for me.  Thanks for the help, I really appreciate it.

To reduce the amount of comment spam, I have decided to only allow comments in the photo albums to registered users. Unfortunately, that means another registration, username and password for everyone to remember.  It would be nice if the forums and the photo album users where linked, but they aren’t.

If I can find a decent anti-spam plugin for the gallery, I will rethink the user requirements. I hate to make it harder for you to comment on pictures, but it is necessary.

If anyone has trouble registering, please let me know.

A new book Fifteen Days: Stories of Bravery, Friendship, Life and Death from Inside the New Canadian Army is available for pre-order from Amazon.

Don Cherry read the book and said, “Sandstorms, killer heat, sneak suicide attacks, rotten food, bites from five-foot snakes, death of buddies, can’t tell the enemy from friends – a tough and deadly war, yet Blatchford shows how our troops soldier on with no complaints. You will be involved in conversations with the troops that could only be gathered first hand. This book will open your eyes to this brutal war and it is worthy of our brave young men and women.  It is a tough book written by a tough broad who tells it like it is. I could not put the book down.”

You can read an excerpt from the book in the Globe & Mail that talks about Gomez’s death and mentions that he was in the Airborne Regiment.

[Click here to purchase the book]

It is with great sadness that we learned of the passing of Bill Murray. He passed away at 0330hrs on the 22 October. Bill was a sapper and a Jumper with the Canadian Airborne Regiment Field Engineers.

There will be a service and reception at Br.280, Royal Canadian Legion, Vedder Golden, Chilliwack BC, on Monday the 29th of Oct at 1300hrs.

All former and current paratroopers are invited to attend the General Meeting and Christmas Dinner for the Airborne Regiment Association of Canada. It will be held at the Rideau Canal WO’s and SGT’s Mess in Ottawa on the 24th of November 2007.

For information on the event and registration, visit the Association website.