Just for a way of a reference point, the sea days of the navy have not decreased, but sea days are only one measure of our readiness. I have reduced the number of major ship exercises down to two major ship exercises every year instead of three. But in doing that, I make the major multi-ship exercises better exercises. I put more resources into those events. That's one thing I've done, if there was ever a translation from going to something less. I can't deny again that I do not have a replenishment ship and I do not have one of the command platforms, HMCSIroquois. I continue to operate HMCSAthabascan until 2017 to help generate helicopter pilots for the air force, to do the continental and homeland mission, and to do patrols like the fisheries patrols or a counter-drug intercept, if required.
So sea days have stayed the same. I've taken the number of major multi-ship exercises and I've reduced them to two but I've made them bigger. I go looking much more assertively for big exercises with allies around the world to get the missing pieces that I could have generated had I had Preserver still operating. That's why I'm in Virginia operating—and commanding—we are commanding an American naval force to help them generate their readiness as all navies look to a smart defence with their allies to generate more in a period of less.