By Dr. Ann Griffiths, 30 January 2025
There has been much criticism – some of it written by me – about the Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships. I still think that the ships are not what the navy needs, but I won’t argue the point here. It’s good to see that the ships are getting out and about. The ships have put on a few miles -- let me note a few examples, the historic transit of the Northwest Passage a few years ago, participation in RIMPAC 2024, a transit through the Welland Canal (see an account of this historic first trip in the winter issue of CNR) and participation in Op Caribbe. (HMCS Harry DeWolf departed Halifax on 26 January to participate in Op Caribbe.) In another first for the ships, HMCS Margaret Brooke, which left Halifax a few weeks ago, is now participating in Op Projection – South America. According to the RCN, Margaret Brooke’s travels will include the first circumnavigation of South America and visit to Antarctica by a Royal Canadian Navy vessel. The ship will visit ports along the coast of South America to do a little naval diplomacy and (hopefully) strengthen relationships in the region. While in Antarctica, the ship will support Canadian scientific research as it hosts a team of government scientists on board. If people joined the navy to see the world, their dream may come true; but if they wanted to see the world on a warship, that’ll have to wait a bit longer.
7 thoughts on “Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships – Out and About”
Hello Dr. Griffiths,
As far as what the Navy currently needs, I think the DeWolf class are showing their worth more than any other type of vessel within the fleet at the moment. The RCN is struggling with personnel retention and issues of morale, part of this fundamentally comes down to the decaying nature of the fleet and their designs which originated in a now bygone era. With sailors across the fleet facing a variety of stresses in their daily lives as with many other Canadians, it is a measurable change to come to work on a new, spacious and comfortable class of vessels that is equipped with a variety of modern amenities. These vessels have definitely had their fair share of teething problems as one would expect for the first major class of vessels built for the RCN in Canada in many years, but it is hard to downplay the importance of modern and comfortable vessels in a period where the RCN is desperately trying to retain existing sailors and generate new ones.
When comparing the DeWolf class to the Halifax or Kingston class vessels, the standard of living really becomes evident. Enlisted personnel and junior officers having larger berthing spaces with fewer people, while also having private showers/washroom facilities in these spaces. Ship wide WIFI, a properly equipped and sized gym, well equipped mess areas, an all ranks mess and even substantial multi-purpose areas for games/events when they are not otherwise in use. In overseas deployments versus the torturous experience of sailing aboard a Kingston class ship, the increased size and seakeeping of the DeWolf class is far more comfortable for the crew.
As the Kingston class is planned to be phased out entirely by 2029 and the Halifax class continues to age, the DeWolf class is going to be picking up a very large amount of slack for many different fleet deployments. As you mention, these vessels have been incredibly busy with a variety of deployments at home and abroad, many of them being historic firsts for the Navy. Ultimately, I don’t think many personnel within the Navy would complain about being stationed aboard something that isn’t a “warship” once they can see past much of the criticism, and the value of these vessels becomes obvious.
I always wonder, when I see these comments about building relationships, what exactly has been built? A port visit, perhaps once in five years, produces a mildly pleasant memory for a few hundred people, who may never see each other again. Does it have any greater benefit than that?
Of course, as we saw a couple of years ago with the evacuation from Sudan, sometimes having ships scattered randomly around the world is a benefit in itself.
Wherever a RCN goes it’s an embodiment of Canadian values and has diplomatic meaning. This is not about building ties but strengthening the ones we already have especially in these times of economic uncertainty.
“…but if they wanted to see the world on a warship, that’ll have to wait a bit longer”, the usual denigrating comments for people who miss the point. Likely the Argentinians and Chileans are curious in assessing the capabilities of an icebreaking ship that is equipped with the latest in signal communications and satellite capabilities. The Southern ocean may be a more demanding environment than the North Atlantic so for us it’s a chance to see how this ship performs. The Chileans in particular are good seamen, cheerful and motivated, and are much like the Canadians in that they can repair anything. They also have a robust marine corps that would excel in boarding operations.
Agreed. In the past we have stationed RCN personnel in Chilean icebreakers in the Antarctic to gain practical experience. This deployment which includes diplomatic visits that was a regular occurrence in the 60’s and 70’s also showcases our ship to potential buyers.
There are a number of themes in these replies and there could be a common thread. The South American navies maintain square rigged ships for training and they naturally produce good sailors. The RCN has recruitment and retention problems. Applying some imagination here, why don’t we build and commission a modern version of one these ships and use it to train incoming recruits of all ranks together? An updated windship design could be a marvel. Given a choice I would base it in the Caribbean, cold and wet can come later in a career but to start, well, first a love of the sea has to be developed… and what better place than ports like Cartagena and the Spanish Main. Exchanges with Chile and Argentina should be encouraged, Spanish for us, French and English for them. The physical fitness and the confidence that would come from climbing in rigging would open young Canadian minds to mathematics, engineering , navigation and they will naturally create a real foundation and tolerance to motion sickness and the cold comes with our true nautical environment – ice has its thrills too. HMCS Surprise anyone?
No not a very good idea at all. We simply do not have the resources for such an extravagance. The current sailing ship the RCN has – HMCS Oriole – is a resource heavy ship to operate and maintain. So much so that its future is probably in jeopardy as it doesn’t reflect today’s RCN.