Primary Reserve

The Primary Reserve of the Canadian Armed Forces (Première réserve des Forces canadiennes) is the first and largest of the four sub-components of the Canadian Armed Forces reserves, followed by the Supplementary Reserve, the Cadet Organizations Administration and Training Service (formerly the Cadet Instructors Cadre) and the Canadian Rangers. The reserve force is represented, though not commanded, at the national level by the chief of reserves and employer support. This is usually a major-general or rear-admiral. The Primary Reserve consists of sailors, soldiers, and aviators who may augment or operate alongside their Regular Force counterparts. Each reserve force is operationally and administratively responsible to its corresponding environmental command; those being the Royal Canadian Navy, the Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Primary reservists number approximately 27,000 (all ranks, all services). The reserves are important to sustaining CF operations, particularly following the defence budget cuts of the 90s. The Naval Reserve (NAVRES) is the reserve formation of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). It is organized into 24 Naval Reserve Divisions (NRDs), shore-based training facilities in communities across the country. Each NRD has a small cadre of full-time reservists and regular force members to coordinate training and administration, but is for the most part directed by the division's part-time leadership. Training is conducted year round with regular force counterparts at the three Canadian Forces Fleet Schools and reservists frequently deploy on regular force ships to augment ships' companies. Traditionally, the Naval Reserve supplied all personnel (except two regular forces electricians and one marine engineer) for the 12 Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels (MCDVs), which are used for patrol, minesweeping and bottom-inspection operations. However in 2017, MCDVs were shifted to a blended crew model, skewing more heavily to being primarily manned by Regular Force (RegF) members.