The Avro Arrow is a topic that has fascinated Canadians since its controversial cancellation in 1959. However, in the last ten years the narrative has changed dramatically from an American plot to ruin our aerospace industry to a decision made by the Canadian government based on very real calculations about the security threat to North America and the changing defence landscape of the late 1950s. In this episode we talk with Alan Barnes who has recently uncovered some incredible research that shows how important Canadian intelligent services were to the decision to cancel the Avro Arrow project. Alan has clearly uncovered that not only was the cancellation of the Arrow a highly calculated move by the Diefenbaker government but Canada’s newly established intelligence services played a key role in helping the Canadian government predict the future of defence issues which in turn spelled the end of the Arrow project.
Alan Barnes was an analyst and a manager of analysts in the Canadian intelligence community for over 25 years. He served as a military intelligence officer, and as the Middle East analyst in the Political Intelligence Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. Mr. Barnes moved to the Intelligence Assessment Secretariat (IAS) of the Privy Council Office when that organization was formed in 1993 and was the Director of the IAS Middle East and Africa Division from 1995 until his retirement in 2011. Mr. Barnes played a key role in the IAS's efforts to improve analytical tradecraft and in the training of new analysts. Since his retirement Mr. Barnes has continued his work on issues related to intelligence assessment. He is currently researching the history of strategic intelligence in Canada since 1945 and is Project Co-Leader of the Canadian Foreign Intelligence History Project (CFIHP).
CFIHP is a collaborative effort to encourage the study of foreign intelligence in Canada and to facilitate access to archival records on this subject. By working together, researchers have a better chance of overcoming the many challenges associated with working in this field.
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S3E5 Mona Parsons – The Wolfville Resister
S3E4 The Battle of Passchendaele
*Repeat Episode* Canada’s House Band: The History of the Tragically Hip
S3E3 A Constitution in Question – The King-Byng Affair of 1926
S3E2 Behold the Golden Harp! The Fenian Invasions
S3E1 The Last of the Mohicans in Canadian History
*Special Episode* Bite and Hold: The Battle for Hill 70 and Lens August 1917
*Special Episode* Canada 150
S2E18 A Bold and Audacious Plan – The Battle for Assoro
S2E17 La Famille Verendrye and the Exploration of the West
S2E16 A Grim Day Indeed: The Halifax Explosion
S2E15 Vimy Ridge Part 2
S2E14 Vimy Ridge Part 1
S2E13 The Komagata Maru
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S2E10 The Fall of Hong Kong, December 1941
S2E9 The October Crisis of 1970
S2E8 Canada’s House Band: A History of the Tragically Hip
S2E7 Feminists or Feared Revolutionaries? The VWC and the Abortion Caravan of 1970
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