Happy 116th Birthday to the Royal Canadian Navy!
Birthday Wishes
Today is a special one. If you’re tracking the calendar, you already know what May 4th means for Canada’s maritime community. Exactly 116 years ago today, the Naval Service Act received Royal Assent, officially establishing the Naval Service of Canada (What King George V would rename the Royal Canadian Navy just a year later.)
From the start with Niobe and Rainbow, we went from a fledgling fleet doing coastal fishery patrols to the fourth-largest navy in the world by the end of WWII, and today, we're navigating one of the most critical transitional periods in the RCN's history.
It is a time of transformation and renewal as the Royal Canadian Navy undertakes her largest modernization amd expansion since the end of the Second World War. While it is always good to celebrate and look to the future, there is also a time of reflection. This last year has been a monumental one for the RCN:
Full rate production has began on the future River-class destroyer, with an official keel laying set for next month if I'm remembering correct
We are very likely weeks away from a decision on the future Canadian Patrol Submarine, one of the largest single submarine procurements in decades. With it the RCN might triple the current fleet from dour to twelve subs, one of the largest in NATO.
This one is a bit bittersweet. Late last year, we saw the RCN officially start the process of paying off the Kingston-class Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels. It’s the end of an era, but a necessary step as we prepare for the future ahead.
Canadian Forces Auxiliary Vessel (CFAV) Canso was accepted by the Royal Canadian Navy, and with it two more tugs have been contracted to Groupe Ocean to complete the total six.
HMCS Max Bernays pushed further north than any RCN vessel in history last year, further cementing the navies position as a player in our Arctic. Meanwhile, HMCS Margaret Brooke took things in the exact opposite direction, completing a historic, first-of-its-kind deployment across South America and all the way down to Antarctica. From the absolute top of the world to the absolute bottom.
There is much more that we could say, but you get the idea. It has been a monumental year, arguably the most intensive in a long time. We talk a lot about where the Navy needs to be, but today is about celebrating where it is and the sailors who make it run. It's a tough job, often done far from home, in some of the most unforgiving environments on the planet.
So, wherever you’re reading this from, whether you're on base, out at sea, or just following along from the civilian side. Raise a glass to the Royal Canadian Navy today.
Ready Aye Ready.