News

Today, Lieutenant-General Frances Allen assumed the responsibilities of the Vice Chief of the Defence Staff (VCDS) in an assumption of command ceremony which took place at National Defence Headquarters Carling.

Lieutenant-General Wayne Eyre, the Acting Chief of the Defence Staff, presided over the ceremony in the presence of a small assembly of military and civilian members of the Defence Team.

As second in command of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), the VCDS is responsible for an array of functions ensuring that National Defence policy and strategic objectives are achieved, including moving forward the Defence Services Program. Accountable to both the CDS and the Deputy Minister of National Defence, the VCDS also governs National Defence headquarters and its related activities.

Lieutenant-General Allen began her career in the Canadian Armed Forces in 1983. Since then she has commanded and led at multiple levels, including Officer Commanding the National Systems Management Centre in Ottawa, the Aerospace and Telecommunications Engineering Support Squadron in Trenton, the Canadian Forces Network Operations Centre, and the Canadian Forces Information Operations Group. A cyber and information warfare expert, she becomes VCDS after serving as the Military Representative of Canada to the NATO Military Committee in Brussels, Belgium since July 2020.

“I am deeply honoured by the appointment to the Vice Chief of the Defence Staff position. I intend to continue the work initiated by LGen Rouleau and his team, including in such critical areas as joint capabilities, capability integration, and data and digitalization. The challenges facing the military and our nation are complex, elaborate, and nuanced, and it is a privilege to be contributing to the way forward for the whole of the Defence team,” said Lieutenant-General Frances Allen.