HALIFAX – Halifax Harbour looked like a scene from an action movie Tuesday with helicopters, boats and military personnel taking part in infantry exercises.
The training was for an elite group of soldiers hoping to become Pathfinders in the Canadian Army.
The Pathfinders course is known as the premier course in the Canadian Army and one of the most challenging to complete.
Thirty-three men started the course six weeks ago but only 17 have made it this far.
“The most gruelling thing about it is the length of it. It’s go, go, go with a lack of food and a lack of sleep for two months” said Master Corporal Kevin Colwill, who completed the training last year.
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Students were rehearsing Tuesday for a mission on McNabs Island.
They first completed a fast casting drill, where they jump out of a moving boat. It’s the same technique Pathfinders, who have been around since World War II, would use during a covert mission.
“The reason we do that is at night if someone were to look from shore, all they would see is that boat and hear the boat, but not see a patrol pathfinders going into the water,” said Captain Cullen Downey, an instructor of the Pathfinders course.
After hitting the water, the teams must re-group at a rendezvous point to make sure everyone is okay. Then,in a formation known as an extended line, they make their way to shore.
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All of the training is done in full military gear.
“The most difficult thing is probably the weight. The rucksack is probably a hundred pounds, a hundred and ten pounds plus the water you see dripping out of them,” said Colwill.
Candidates then move on to a process calling Helo Casting — jumping from a Sea King helicopter. It’s another way the Pathfinders can get into an area.
In order to get have a shot at the becoming a Patrol Pathfinder, students must be a Corporal or above.
There are still two more missions to complete before candidates know if they will be graduating at the end of the week.
Graduation for the class of 2013 will take place Friday.
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