identity of its members from Canada's line regiments with that of the Airborne. This aborted the original operational purpose of the Airborne and, significantly, planted the seeds of an ongoing conflict of identity and loyalty within the Canadian infantry family. Allard wrote that "those who took this route showed an absolute ignorance of the requirement for quick-reaction in today's world." Location On General Allard's retirement, the unit was established at CFB Griesbach in Edmonton, Alberta, in 1968. This was a large Air Transport Command base. The prairie weather is ideal for specialized parachute training, and Edmonton is the "gateway to the North". But the location in western Canada was disputed by some for operational reasons in that Canada's rapidly declining troop strength was consequently heavily skewed to that part of the continent where neither its population nor its NATO commitments justified. There was a full brigade in the West, plus the Airborne. In central and eastern Canada, there were only four battalions of infantry. The Edmonton location also created linguistic problems. The Airborne's French-speaking elements had initially been left at CFB Valcartier in Quebec, but they have also moved to Alberta in 1970. There, it became difficult to keep them up to strength, particularly as many married leaders refused to make their career in an environment unsuitable for their families. Finally, in the face of recruiting and retention problems, as well as operational concerns, the Airborne was moved to CFB Petawawa in Ontario, where it remained until it was disbanded. In 1970 a mechanized infantry battalion was added to the regiment and was named 3rd Canadian Mechanized Commando. This unit was an element of the 4th Canadian Mechanized Brigade and was stationed in CFB Baden, Germany. Although it was part of the regiment it did not have a parachute role. It was disbanded in 1977. Organization, size, and identity The Airborne Regiment also suffered from frequent reorganizations. Initially conceived as a small brigade, its lack of resources forced it from the start to become a rather large tactical "regiment" with two infantry "commandos", one English-speaking and the other mostly French-speaking, as well as one artillery battery, one field engineer squadron, one signal squadron, and a service company. A tug-of-war thus started between advocates of an exclusive "airborne" identity versus Canada's other infantry regiments, whose support was needed to promote a flow of soldiers and, in particular, leaders. An uneasy compromise