Randall Wakelam – författare

The cancellation of the CF-105 Arrow in 1959 holds such a grip on the imagination of Canadians that earlier developments in defence procurement remain in the shadows.Randall Wakelam corrects this oversight – and offers fresh insight into the AVRO saga and contemporary procurement issues – by detailing the complexities Canada's air force faced in buying fighter aircraft and by showing how the RCAF grew by leaps and bounds. Wakelam shows that cabinet members, chiefs of staff, and air marshals were forced to negotiate competing pressures to arm the air force, please allies, and save money. Their decisions resulted in the CF-100 Canuck and the F-86 Sabre, Canada's front-line defensive aircraft in the coldest years of the Cold War. Although historians assume that the Arrow arrived on the heels of these successes, Wakelam reveals that neither the air force nor the government believed AVRO could manufacture even the CF-100 on budget.

Compared to armies and navies, which have existed as professional fighting services for centuries, the technology that makes air forces possible is much newer. As a result, these services have had to quickly develop methods of preparing aviators to operate in conditions ranging from peace or routine security to full-scale war. The first book to address the history and scope of air power professionalization through learning programs,  Educating Air Forces offers valuable new insight into strategy and tactics worldwide.  Here, a group of international experts examine the philosophies, policies, and practices of air service educational efforts in the United States, France, Italy, Germany, Australia, Canada, and the UK. First, the contributors discuss the founding, successes, and failures of European air force learning programs between the Great War and World War II. Chapters in section two explore how the tense political climate during the Cold War influenced the creation, curriculum, and results of various programs. The final section addresses the post--Cold War era, specifically examining how educational programs are adapting to soldiers' needs and the demands of modern warfare.Featuring contributions from eminent scholars in the field, this volume surveys the learning approaches globally employed by air forces in the past century and evaluates their effectiveness. Educating Air Forces reveals how experiential learning and formal education are not only inextricably intertwined, but also necessary to cope with advances in modern warfare.

This volume presents the original text of a groundbreaking study on professional education for the Canadian officer corpsThe Report of the Officer Development Board, from 1969, is commonly called the Rowley Report after its primary author, Maj. Gen. Roger Rowley, and its analysis and recommendations have been used extensively over the last forty years to help define learning needs and education strategies for officers of the Canadian Forces. Also included are three new essays that provide context for the report.The Rowley Report begins by describing the complex state of international relations and global trends, and then lays out the cognitive competencies and knowledge requirements as well as the ethos needed by officers to perform effectively. The supplementary essays examine the lasting impact of the report and the development of intellectual ideas, more commonly referred to as ""doctrine,"" within the Canadian Army. The final essay is an account by Rowley himself in which he discusses the challenges he faced in producing the report.The Rowley Report has been lauded by leaders from other militaries and by civilian educators in Canada. With the addition of these essays, this volume offers unique cultural and pedagogical insights to Canada's military leadership.

Bringing together leading researchers on Canadian air power, On the Wings of War and Peace captures the history of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) during the first decades of the Cold War – a period which marked the zenith of air force accomplishments in peacetime Canada. The volume covers topics that go beyond straightforward flying operations, examining policies that drove operational needs and capabilities and the personnel, technical, and logistical functions that made those operations possible. With contributions written by former RCAF members who have both expert and personal knowledge of their topics, On the Wings of War and Peace brings new perspectives to the RCAF’s role in shaping the modern Canadian nation.