Canadian Army says new military sleeping bags not suitable for 'typical Canadian winter'

Despite the defence department spending more than $34.8 million on new sleeping bags, the Canadian Army asked late last year that hundreds of soldiers headed to a joint northern exercise in Alaska with the Americans be issued with old, 1960s-vintage bedrolls.

Troops who had used the recently issued General Purpose Sleeping Bag System (GPSBS) late last fall in a preparatory exercise found "several critical issues," according to an internal briefing note obtained by CBC News.

More than 350 soldiers belonging to the 3rd battalion Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (3 PPCLI) deployed to Ram Falls Provincial Park, west of Red Deer, Alta., in late November last year, where they spent several days training for northern operations.

Temperatures during the deployment ranged from – 5C during the day to – 20C at night.

The "critical issues" discovered by the soldiers "related to lack of warmth with the new GPSBS," said the briefing note, written on Dec. 5, 2023.

The general unsuitability of the new sleeping bag system has prompted the Department of National Defence (DND) to start looking to buy additional bedrolls that can be used in the Far North.

During the training exercise last fall, soldiers reported that even though they used both the inner and outer shells and slept in tents heated by stoves, they were still cold.

According to the internal briefing note, 3 PPCLI's quartermaster concluded the new sleeping bags were "better suited for use in weather conditions that are characteristic of late spring to early fall" and were not practical "for typical Canadian winter conditions nor the extreme cold of Alaska," where the troops deployed for further training in January.

The briefing note recommended that soldiers deployed on that exercise with the U.S. be "loaned" 500 of the army's old Arctic sleeping bags — the ones the new system was meant to replace.

The Liberal government has placed renewed emphasis on defending Canada's Arctic and the recent defence policy update — Our North Strong and Free — promised a series of new equipment purchases for cold weather operations. Specifically, the policy promised to acquire "new vehicles adapted to ice, snow and tundra."

But several soldiers who contacted CBC News with complaints about the sleeping bags said they're skeptical about those promises, given DND's failure to deliver on something as basic as a sleeping bag suitable for a Canadian winter.

In a statement, DND said 3 PPCLI was actually the second unit to complain about the new sleeping bags. Troops belonging to the 2nd battalion Royal Canadian Regiment (2RCR) also found the new sleeping bags flawed on a separate exercise.

Still, the department said it's not giving up the new bedrolls and has started a second, separate procurement for sleeping bags that are suitable for a Canadian winter.

"The GPSBS remains a core component of the Canadian Armed Forces' sleeping system and is expected to stay in service for many years," the statement said.