Sep 15, 2026 · 50 min · 11 segments
Colonel Todd O’Malley continues our four-part journey through the history of Canadian tactical and special operations aviation. In Part 3, Todd recounts flying the CH-135 Twin Huey in Somalia, where…
Todd O'MalleyGuest
Brian MorrisonHost
Just a warning to our listeners, the story we're about to explain is graphic, but it is a critical piece of Canadian history to acknowledge and understand.
The next thing that we're going to discuss needs a little bit of context because people who are my age and older will definitely know what we're talking about, but some of our younger listeners may not have heard of this incident.
In December 1992, Canada deployed its elite airborne regiment to Belet Weyne, Somalia, as part of a United Nations-backed humanitarian and famine relief mission.
On March 16th, 1993, Shidane Arone was captured by Canadian soldiers after allegedly sneaking into the compound to steal supplies.
Over the course of three hours, he was held in a weapons bunker where he was bound, blindfolded, and brutally beaten to death with fists, boots, a riot baton, and a metal pipe.
One member of the airborne regiment, Private Alvin Kyle Brown, was found guilty of manslaughter and torture and received a five-year prison sentence.
Another suspect, Master Corporal Clayton Matchee, attempted suicide while in military custody, which left him with severe brain damage and rendered him permanently unfit to stand trial.
Institutionally, this incident caused massive shame and resulted in the disbandment of the entire Canadian airborne regiment and a massive restructuring of how Canada approached special operations.
What was it like to reintegrate back into normal life after those events had happened?
Just a warning to our listeners, the story we're about to explain is graphic, but it is a critical piece of Canadian history to acknowledge and understand.
The next thing that we're going to discuss needs a little bit of context because people who are my age and older will definitely know what we're talking about, but some of our younger listeners may not have heard of this incident.
In December 1992, Canada deployed its elite airborne regiment to Belet Weyne, Somalia, as part of a United Nations-backed humanitarian and famine relief mission.
On March 16th, 1993, Shidane Arone was captured by Canadian soldiers after allegedly sneaking into the compound to steal supplies.
Over the course of three hours, he was held in a weapons bunker where he was bound, blindfolded, and brutally beaten to death with fists, boots, a riot baton, and a metal pipe.
One member of the airborne regiment, Private Alvin Kyle Brown, was found guilty of manslaughter and torture and received a five-year prison sentence.
Another suspect, Master Corporal Clayton Matchee, attempted suicide while in military custody, which left him with severe brain damage and rendered him permanently unfit to stand trial.
Institutionally, this incident caused massive shame and resulted in the disbandment of the entire Canadian airborne regiment and a massive restructuring of how Canada approached special operations.
What was it like to reintegrate back into normal life after those events had happened?
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