Unit Appointments - Commanding Officer
5th (British Columbia) Field Artillery Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery
Lieutenant Colonel Craig Leslie Cotter, CD

Lieutenant Colonel Craig Cotter joined the Canadian Forces as an artillery officer in 1972 and after completing his artillery training joined the second Regiment Royal Canadian Horse Artillery (2RCHA), his first regimental tour, performing gun position and forward observer officer duties. Moving from 2RCHA in Petawawa to 1RCHA in Lahr, Germany he again performed duties at the gun position Regimental HQ and as Forward Observer. He then moved to Force Mobile Command the Army HQ in Saint Hubert Quebec where he was the OPI for Reserve Individual Training including the Militia Individual Training Career Program (MITCP) and the Reserve Entry Scheme Officers (RESO).

Lieutenant Colonel Cotter returned to regimental duty in 2 RCHA in 1984 as the Regimental Command Post Officer and was subsequently appointed the Adjutant while the regiment deployed on Peace Keeping Operations in Cyprus in 1986.

On leaving the Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Cotter worked in the Director General Official Languages as a terminology coordinator and was promoted to major in 1987. The next two years saw him as the Staff Officer Field Artillery at FMC HQ in St Hubert Quebec, where he was assigned as the G3 of the Divisional Artillery for Exercise Rendezvous 89 in Wainwright Alberta.

Lieutenant Colonel Cotter assumed battery command in 1RCHA from 1989 to 1991 just prior to the regiments return to Shilo, Manitoba. Following this period he was selected to attend the Canadian Forces College in Toronto. Subsequently, he again served with the reserve force as the G4 of Ottawa Militia District. He was called on to be a staff officer to the Chief of Defence Staff and served in that capacity until 1996 serving three CDS.

From 1996 to 2000 he served as the Staff Officer Operations to the Canadian Military Delegation to NATO at NATO HQ in Brussels, Belgium. In this appointment he represented Canada in both Military and Diplomatic roles during the NATO Bosnia and Kosovo operations. Lieutenant Colonel Cotter returned from overseas to the Canadian Land Force Command and Staff College in Kingston Ontario to the position of Executive Assistant to the Commandant. While employed at the Staff College, he was appointed as OPI for the project to move the College delivering its curriculum On-Line or via e-Learning.

Lieutenant Colonel Cotter left the regular component of the Canadian Forces in October 2005 and component transferred to the Reserve Force as Battery Commander of 55 Battery. Lieutenant Colonel Cotter was promoted to his current rank in Sep 2006 and assumed command of 5 (BC) Field Regiment RCA.

He is married to Linda Plamondon, originally of Notre Dame Du Grace, Quebec and has two daughters; Ainsley born in 1982 and Taylor born in 1992.