Feature Helicopter squadron leader ready for Gulf by Glenn Werkman The Review Dedication to the task at hand keeps thoughts about possible conflict in the Persian Gulf out of mind for 443 Anti-Submarine Hel- icopter Squadron air navigation officer Capt. Luc Potvin. A destroyer squadron air officer and the first West Coast air force officer to go to the Gulf, Potvin will leave his wife and two young children behind in Sidney when he catches a commercial flight to the Gulf Jan. 15 — coincidentally the same date as U.S. President Bush’s deadline for Iraq to leave Kuwait. Since October the training room walls at the helicopter squadron’s headquarters at Pat Bay have been filled with maps of the Persian Gulf and surrounding area. Executive officer Maj. Grant Bristow said: “We're dancing as fast as we can to get the guys ready.” Preparing to manage all the Canadian aircraft in the Gulf has Potvin completely absorbed in his work, putting personal feelings about leaving behind him. “Thadn’t really thought about it. I’m part of the military and it’s part of my job,” he said Friday. “I think it'll start to sink in closer to when I leave or when I get to the airport.” Potvin will join the Canadian navy ship Athabaskan in port at Dubai, then accompany it to the Gulf of Oman for two weeks of training prior to the rest of his squadron arriving. Sea King helicopters in the Per- sian Gulf have new equipment that ig not on the helicopters here, including an infra-red missile detection device, radar warning receiver, plus chaff and flare dis- pensers and a C-9 small arms weapon mounted in the cargo door. One of Potvin’s greatest challeng- es will be to make new digital navigation equipment work with older equipment that operates with a gears and wheels mechanism. “They don’t talk to each other so there’s a lot of manual work to do,” Potvin said. In total, 31 members of the 120-member 443 squadron will join the Athabascan for training, before assisting navy ships in a variety of roles. Coast Guard ripped off The Coast Guard Auxiliary based at Van Isle Marina is out of commission because a hand-held radio was one of several items stolen from its boat house Dec. 19, Sidney RCMP said. A Si-tex hand-held VHF radio and three yellow survival suits with Coast Guard Auxiliary print- ed on the back were stolen from the boat house where the rigid hull zodiac rescue vessel is stored, police said. The items were inside lockers in the*boathouse. “The loss of this radio has taken the rescue vessel out of service, an RCMP press release said. The matter is still under investi- gation and police ask that those with information call Sidney RCMP or CrimeStoppers. Al HIS NAVIGATOR'S post inside a Sea King helicopter is Capt. Luc Potvin, who will be leaving for the Persian Gulf Jan. 15 fortwo weeks of training before 30 ofher members of 443 Anti-Submarine Helicopter Squadron join him. Potvin will be the first air force person from the West Coast going to the Middle East conflict and is leaving early to recieve information from the man he will replace. “The basic job of the guys is to find ships and identify them or do a full hailing,” Bristow said. The helicopter does the initial hailing with back-up from its mother ship because of long distances and speed considerations. If it’s required that a Canadian crew board a shipping vessel, a Sea King and its crew could be used. “Usually we call the ship, find out where it’s from, where it’s going and what it’s carrying,” Potvin said. But there are also mundane tasks, like picking up spare parts for navy ships. Potvin has made several trips across the Atlantic during his mili- tary career, but all have been on €XEICISE. “This could be like a big exer- cise except this one is for real,” he said. The rest of 443 squadron leaves Pat Bay for Halifax Jan. 23 before relieving its sister squadron, 423 squadron based at Shearwater, N.S. THE ONLY CHOICE for Saanich North & The Islands BOB BOWCOTT INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE Committed to equality, choice an opportunities for women. 658-1232 TheReview Wednesday, January 9, 1991 — All Dorman’s Carpet Cleaners e CARPET CLEANING ¢ UPHOLSTERY CLEANING | Owner Wilf Dorman gives personal attention to all orders JUST US 9570 Northiawn Terrace, Sidney, B.C. FREE ESTIMATES Phone: 656-4754 - 30 Years Experience SPECTACULAR WINTER SALE STARTS WED. JAN 9th IN BOTH SIDNEY & VICTORIA LOCATIONS 20606: DON’T MISS IT All Sales Final 761 Fort St. Victoria, B.C. 384-1723 2392 Beacon Ave. Sidney, B.C. Sidney Service Above Self BY POPULAR DEMAND Qwors < DINNER AND DANCE SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 9th GET YOUR TICKETS TICKETS GOING : ADVANCE TICKETS ONLY DON’T BE DISAPPOINTED TICKETS AVAILABLE AT COLUMBO’S FAMILY RESTAURANT 7855 E. SAANICH RD. 652-3936