Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'll be sharing my time with Mr. Payne.
I'd like to start off by saying that I can confirm that the purchases on behalf of the military are greatly appreciated by the soldiers on the ground. At the Petawawa base I had the benefit of speaking first-hand to soldiers and asking them whether they're getting the equipment they need, and they confirmed that they are.
With respect to the tempo, many of them are eager to get back to the next rotation in Afghanistan. There are giant strides in achievements being made there, and they see how they help from one rotation to the next.
The only concern had to do with how the dependants are being treated and with making sure they have everything they need. Together with General Semianiw, we now have another person on board who is a military spouse herself, and she's helping the dependants throughout the country. Her name is Leslie Natynczyk. It's great work that she's doing, and I can tell you that our dependants at the Petawawa base greatly appreciate her work.
I have two questions. The first has to do with the students' payments. You made reference, Minister, to a way that people joining the military could have part of their tuition paid. That is the first question.
The second question has to do with the new Chinooks coming on board. Do the troops require time on how to interact with this type of chopper for operational purposes, bearing in mind that there has to be the proper funding allocation for that?