Land Force Western Area

Land Force Western Area
Active 1 September 1991 – June 2014
Country Canada
Branch Canadian Army
Type Headquarters
Part of Canadian Army
Garrison/HQ CFB Edmonton
Motto Pace Paratus ad Arma
March "Invercargil"
Website www.army-armee.forces.gc.ca/en/western/index.page
Commanders
Current
commander		 BGen J.C.G. Juneau
Abbreviation LFWA

Land Force Western Area (LFWA) was a formation of the Canadian Army responsible for operations in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.[1] LFWA was headquartered at CFB Edmonton. The command was formed in 1991. In 2013 it was announced that LFWA would be renamed 3rd Canadian Division.[2] This change took place in the summer of 2014.

History

LFWA was created on 1 September 1991, taking command of what was previously Prairie Militia Area, Pacific Militia Area, and the Regular Force Army units and formations in western Canada from the northern lakehead region of Ontario to the Pacific Ocean. At that point in time, the Militia Areas ceased to exist, and the seven subordinate Militia Districts were reorganised into four: British Columbia District, Alberta District, Saskatchewan District, and Manitoba-Lakehead District.[3]

Later that decade, the four reserve force districts were again reorganized into three Canadian Brigade Groups.

In 2014 LFWA was renamed 3rd Canadian Division. With this change of name, the formation was also granted the identifying patch and historical lineage to the division that fought in the two world wars.

Commanders

Units

Land Force Western Area had four Brigade Groups (one Regular Force and threeReserve Force), and an Area Support Group.

There were also five units are under direct command of LFWA that didn't operate under the four brigade groups and one area support group. They were:

1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group

1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group was a Regular Force brigade group based out of CFB Edmonton.

1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group CFB Edmonton
1 CMBG Headquarters & Signal Squadron CFB Edmonton
1st Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery Artillery CFB Shilo
Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) Armoured CFB Edmonton
1 Combat Engineer Regiment Combat engineers CFB Edmonton
1st Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Mechanized infantry CFB Edmonton
2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Mechanized infantry CFB Shilo
3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Light infantry CFB Edmonton
1 Service Battalion Logistic Service and Support CFB Edmonton

1 Area Support Group

1 Area Support Group was headquartered out of CFB Edmonton. The Support Group was responsible for providing service and support to the units of Land Force Western Area.

1 Area Support Group CFB Edmonton
1 Field Ambulance CFB Edmonton
1 Military Police Regiment CFB Edmonton
CFB/ASU Edmonton
CFB/ASU Shilo
CFB Suffield
CFB/ASU Wainwright
ASU Calgary
ASU Chilliwack

38 Canadian Brigade Group

38 Canadian Brigade Group (38 CBG) was a Reserve Force brigade group based out of Winnipeg, Manitoba. It's composed of units in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and eastwards into Ontario to Thunder Bay, Ontario.

38 Canadian Brigade Group Winnipeg
38 Canadian Brigade Group Headquarters Winnipeg
The Saskatchewan Dragoons Armoured reconnaissance Moose Jaw
The Fort Garry Horse Armoured reconnaissance Winnipeg
10th Field Artillery Regiment, RCA Artillery Regina and Yorkton
26th Field Artillery Regiment, RCA Artillery Brandon and Portage la Prairie
116th Independent Field Battery, RCA Artillery Kenora
38 Combat Engineer Regiment Combat engineers Saskatoon, Winnipeg
38 Signals Regiment Communications Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Thunder Bay
The Royal Winnipeg Rifles Light infantry Winnipeg
The Lake Superior Scottish Regiment Light infantry Thunder Bay
The North Saskatchewan Regiment Light infantry Saskatoon and Prince Albert
The Royal Regina Rifles Light infantry Regina
The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders of Canada Light infantry Winnipeg
38 Service Battalion Service and support Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Thunder Bay

39 Canadian Brigade Group

39 Canadian Brigade Group (39 CBG) was a Primary Reserve brigade group based out of Vancouver, BC. All of the units of the brigade are from the province of British Columbia.

39 Canadian Brigade Group Vancouver
39 Canadian Brigade Group Headquarters Vancouver
The British Columbia Regiment (Duke of Connaught's Own) Armoured reconnaissance Vancouver
The British Columbia Dragoons Armoured reconnaissance Kelowna and Vernon
5th (British Columbia) Field Artillery Regiment, RCA Artillery Victoria and Nanaimo
15th Field Artillery Regiment, RCA Artillery Vancouver and Aldergrove
39 Combat Engineer Regiment Combat engineers Vancouver, Chilliwack and Trail
39 Signal Regiment Communications Vancouver, Victoria and Nanaimo
The Rocky Mountain Rangers Light infantry Kamloops
The Royal Westminster Regiment Light infantry New Westminster and Aldergrove
The Seaforth Highlanders of Canada Light infantry Vancouver
The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's) Light infantry Victoria, Nanaimo and Comox
39 Service Battalion Service and support Richmond and Victoria

41 Canadian Brigade Group

41 Canadian Brigade Group (41 CBG) was a Reserve Force brigade group based out of Calgary, Alberta. The units forming the brigade group are from the province of Alberta, as well as a company based out of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.

41 Canadian Brigade Group Calgary
41 Canadian Brigade Group Headquarters Calgary
The South Alberta Light Horse Armoured reconnaissance Edmonton and Medicine Hat
The King's Own Calgary Regiment (RCAC) Armoured reconnaissance Calgary
20th Field Artillery Regiment, RCA Artillery Edmonton and Red Deer
20th Independent Field Battery, RCA Artillery Lethbridge
41 Combat Engineer Regiment Combat engineers Calgary and Edmonton
41 Signal Regiment Communications Calgary, Edmonton, and Red Deer
The Loyal Edmonton Regiment (4th Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry) Light infantry Edmonton and Yellowknife
The Calgary Highlanders Light infantry Calgary
41 Service Battalion Service and support Calgary and Edmonton

Museums

Name Town/City Regions Type Summary
Loyal Edmonton Regiment Museum Edmonton Edmonton Capital Military website, history of the Loyal Edmonton Regiment
5th (BC) Regiment Museum Victoria Capital Military website, history of coast artillery and associated units from 1861 to the present day
Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary’s) Regimental Museum Victoria Capital Military
Regimental Museum of the BC Regiment Vancouver Metro Vancouver Military History and artifacts of The British Columbia Regiment (Duke of Connaught's Own)
Royal Westminster Regiment Historical Society and Museum New Westminster Metro Vancouver Military
Seaforth Highlanders of Canada Regimental Museum and Archives Vancouver Metro Vancouver Military
12th Manitoba Dragoons Museum Brandon Westman Military website, history of the 26th Field Artillery Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery
Royal Winnipeg Rifles Regimental Museum Winnipeg Winnipeg Capital Military website, history of the Royal Winnipeg Rifles

Acronyms

LFWA was sometimes referred to irreverently as "Luftwaffe" due to its acronym.

References

  1. ↑ "What is Land Force Western Area". Department of National Defence/Canadian Army/LFWA-JTFW HQ. 29 July 2011. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
  2. ↑ "Restoring the Canadian Army’s historical identity". Department of National Defence. Retrieved 9 July 2013.
  3. ↑ "Domestic Military Organization 1900–1999". Canadian Soldiers.com. 22 February 2013.
  4. ↑ "Commander LFWA – JTWA". Department of National Defence/Canadian Army/LFWA-JTFW HQ. 25 June 2010. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Land Force Western Area.

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, October 20, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.