Dr. Ann Griffiths, 15 April 2021
As we all hunker down at home waiting for the world to open up again, the RCN has already had a busy year! HMCS Halifax is currently the flagship for Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 while on Operation Reassurance. The ship and crew have been focused on exercises and manoeuvres with other NATO members in the Atlantic Ocean and Baltic Sea. HMCS Calgary is in the Pacific Ocean. It has made port calls in Hawaii, Guam, Brunei and Vietnam, as it joins Operation Projection Asia-Pacific. And if that wasn’t enough, two Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels are chasing down narcotic traffickers in the eastern Pacific. HMC Ships Saskatoon and Brandon are involved in Operation Caribbe conducting inspections of vessels in partnership with US Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachments to detect and deter illicit trafficking at sea. Another MCDV, HMCS Moncton, returned to Halifax in March after its six-week rotation on Operation Caribbe in the Caribbean Sea. And if that isn’t enough, a member of the RCN is commanding Combined Task Force 150 (CTF 150) in the Arabian Sea. Busy time for the RCN.