Royal Canadian Navy

Royal Canadian Navy ; Marine royale canadienne
Lineup	May 4, 1910
Country	Canada
Armed forces	Canadian Forces
Type	Armed forces ( navy )
Strength	8,300 active ; 4,600 reservists ; 3,700 civilians
Location	Halifax , Nova Scotia and Esquimalt
motto	Parati vero Parati ( Ready Aye Ready )
march	Heart of Oak
equipment	12 frigates, ; 2 supply ships, ; 4 submarines, ; 12 coastal defense ships
Civil and military leadership
Commander of the RCN	Vice Admiral Maurice Frank Ronald "Ron" Lloyd
Commander of Maritime Forces Atlantic	Rear Adm. Craig Baines
Commander of Maritime Forces Pacific	Rear Admiral Art McDonald
insignia
Naval war flag
Gösch

Memorial for fallen soldiers in World War II.

The Royal Canadian Navy (English) or Marine Royale Canadienne (French) has been a largely independent branch of the Canadian Forces (Canadian Forces / Forces canadiennes) since 2011 . There is also the Canadian Army ( Army ) and the Royal Canadian Air Force ( Air Force ).

Prefix of ships

Since 1910, all Canadian warships have had HMCS as part of their name ( ship prefix ) , which means Her (or His) Majesty's Canadian Ship . This tradition is continued to this day, although the Royal Canadian Navy as a separate armed force did not bear the title "Royal" until August 2011. As a result of a cabinet decision, the name of the Canadian Navy is now back to the Royal Canadian Navy, as is the Royal Canadian Air Force. As Queen of Canada, the British Queen is the head of state, represented by the Governor General of Canada .

history

1910-1918

The Militia Act 1868 provided for the creation of a Marine Militia . It was not until the Naval Service Bill of May 4, 1910 that the Naval Service of Canada was founded and subordinated to the Ministry of Navy and Fisheries. The first ships the new Navy received in late 1910 were the HMCS Niobe (active until 1915) and the British cruiser HMCS Rainbow , which was ordered to the Falkland Islands in December 1914 . Before the First World War, two submarines were also procured that operated in the Pacific. During the war, a cruiser and two destroyers were built for the Navy. On September 5, 1918, the Royal Canadian Naval Air Service (RCNAS) ( naval aviators of the Royal Canadian Navy) was founded with the help of the United States Navy .

Until 1946

On May 31, 1931, the first new destroyers HMCS Saguenay and HMCS Skeena were commissioned after the First World War at a shipyard in Portsmouth . In view of the Japanese armament, a new building program had to be started. Until the outbreak of war in September 1939, only six destroyers and a few smaller ships were ready to fight.

During the Second World War, the fleet was massively expanded. They specialized in escorts and anti-submarine combat. In 1945 some ships were taken over by the Royal Navy. After Japan surrendered , the RCN was quickly downsized.

1947-1968

Many of the older ships from World War II took part in the Korean War; an aircraft carrier was used during the Suez Crisis . The RCN was integrated into the command structure of NATO during the Cold War . Seven new St. Laurent- class destroyers were built mainly for anti-submarine defense. This was followed by the destroyers of the Restigouche class and the Mackenzie class with seven and four ships.

Renaming and reorganization

On February 1, 1968, the Royal Canadian Navy went with the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Royal Canadian Army in the Canadian Armed Forces. This is how the individual armed forces emerged - the Canadian Armed Forces (Forces armées canadiennes). In this new structure, the three former armed forces were divided into six functional commands. The Navy's new name was now Canadian Forces Maritime Command .

In August 2011, following a cabinet decision, the historical names were reintroduced so that one can again speak of a largely independent armed force.

organization

The vast land mass of Canada borders three oceans. The Arctic Ocean is covered by ice over a large area (partly permanently, partly for many months of the year) and is considered an unlikely direction of attack. The Canadian Coast Guard (a civilian organization with very limited police powers) oversees these areas. This leaves two basic areas of operation for the Royal Canadian Navy, which are geographically separated from each other. The fleet is generally divided into two flotillas (which operate independently of each other). Each is led by a rear admiral . The third major association of the Navy (Naval Reserve), which is led by a Commodore , is responsible for the organization and further training of reserve personnel.

The Royal Canadian Navy is headquartered in the Department of National Defense (DND) in the government district of Ottawa , Ontario . The Canadian Navy has been an independent high command of the Canadian armed forces since 1968. It also provides resources for the higher command posts. These include the Canada Command , the Canadian Expeditionary Force Command , the Canadian Operational Support Command, and the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command . In addition to these high command, there are command posts at the following locations:

Naval Staff Headquarters (integrated in the Department of National Defense (DND) in the government district in Ottawa , Ontario )

Maritime Forces Atlantic ( MARLANT ) is responsible for surveillance in the Atlantic and Arctic sub-districts. The Maritime Forces Atlantic headquarters is located on CFB Halifax , Canada's largest and oldest naval base in Halifax , Nova Scotia .

Canadian Fleet Atlantic Headquarters ( CANFLTLANT HQ ):
- Victoria- class submarines : HMCS Windsor (SSK 877)
- Halifax- class frigates : HMCS Halifax (FFH 330) ; HMCS Ville de Quebec (FFH 332); HMCS Toronto (FFH 333) ; HMCS Montréal (FFH 336); HMCS Fredericton (FFH 337); HMCS Charlottetown (FFH 339); HMCS St. John's (FFH 340); HMCS Ottawa (FFH 341)
- Coastal patrol craft / minesweeper Kingston -class: HMCS Kingston (MM 700); HMCS Glace Bay (MM 701); HMCS Shawinigan (MM 704); HMCS Goose Bay (MM 707); HMCS Moncton (MM 708); HMCS Summerside (MM 711)
- Fifth Maritime Operations Group (Task Force and Operations Support Personnel)
- Sea Training Atlantic
- Fleet Diving Unit Atlantic (Fleet Diving Association Atlantic)
- The Stadacona Band of The Royal Canadian Navy (Marine Music Corps Atlantic)
CFB Halifax ( CANFLTLANT Naval Base )
Fleet Maintenance Facility Cape Scott, Halifax (fleet repair facility)

Maritime Forces Pacific ( MARPAC ) is responsible for surveillance in the Pacific subdistrict. The Maritime Forces Pacific Headquarters is located at the CFB Esquimalt Naval Base near Victoria , British Columbia .

Canadian Fleet Atlantic Headquarters ( CANFLTLANT HQ ):

Victoria- class submarines : HMCS Victoria (SSK 876); HMCS Corner Brook (SSK 878); HMCS Chicoutimi (SSK 879)

Halifax- class frigates : HMCS Vancouver (FFH 331); HMCS Regina (FFH 334); HMCS Calgary (FFH 335); HMCS Winnipeg (FFH 338); HMCS Ottawa (FFH 341)

Coastal patrol craft / minesweeper Kingston -class: HMCS Nanaimo (MM 702); HMCS Edmonton (MM 703); HMCS Whitehorse (MM 705); HMCS Yellowknife (MM 706); HMCS Saskatoon (MM 709); HMCS Brandon (MM 710)

Canadian Forces Fleet School Esquimalt (Fleet Training School Esquimalt)
Training patrol boats Orca -class: Orca (PCT 55); Raven (PCT 56); Caribou (PCT 57); Renard (PCT 58); Wolf (PCT 59); Grizzly (PCT 60); Cougar (PCT 61); Mosses (PCT 62)

Fleet Diving Unit Pacific

The Naden Band of the Royal Canadian Navy (Pacific Navy Music Corps)

CFB Esquimalt (naval base of CANFLTPAC )

Fleet Maintenance Facility Cape Breton, Esquimalt (fleet repair facility)

Canadian Forces Maritime Warfare Center ( CFMWC ) (CFB Halifax). The center is responsible for the doctrinal development and for the future organizational and material planning of the RCN.

Naval Reserve Headquarters ( NAVRESHQ ) are subordinate to 24 Naval Reserve Divisions, which are spread across the country. The Naval Reserve Headquarters are located on the Pointe-a-Carcy Naval Complex, in Québec . There is also a training center at the base.

Flags

The White Ensign was operated by the ships of the RCN from 1911 to 1965.

On March 3, 1911, the RCN received approval to wear the White Ensign (pictured) , which was to be the RCN's main flag for nearly 54 years. A blue flag was set as Jack with the Union Jack in the top left corner and the coat of arms of Canada . This flag was only set when the ship was in port. The White Ensign was actually the flag of the British Royal Navy, so it was a tradition to paint a green maple leaf on the chimney to show that it was a Canadian ship. From 1961 the Canadian Red Ensign was also worn in the top mast . On February 15, 1965, all flags were replaced by the new flag of Canada .

equipment

Surface fleet

HMCS Calgary ( Halifax- class)

HMCS Whitehorse ( Kingston- class)

12 multipurpose frigate the Halifax class

12 Kingston- class coastal defense vehicles

8 Harry DeWolf class coastal defense vehicles (incoming)

1 supply ship (replacement for the old ships of the Protecteur class , until the arrival of the new JSS )

After the anti-aircraft destroyers of the Iroquois class were decommissioned, the backbone of the Canadian naval forces are currently only the twelve multi-purpose frigates of the Halifax class, which joined the fleet in the 1990s. As a replacement of the Iroquois - which is Province class planned. This is to be equipped with the European radar systems SMART-L and APAR as well as the US- VLS Mk. 41. Due to a lack of funding, however, there is so far neither a concrete schedule nor signed contracts. The FELEX project, which includes the modernization of the electronics and weapon systems of the Halifax class, is more advanced . The contract was awarded to the US armaments company Lockheed Martin .

Twelve Kingston- class boats were procured between 1996 and 1999 . The main task of these 1,000 t heavy boats is to monitor the territorial waters and the EWZ. In a secondary role, they can also be used as mine hunting boats. However, the equipment for this role is now technically obsolete and consideration is being given to modernizing it.

In addition, the Canadian Navy has a wide variety of auxiliary ships. In addition to a large number of small boats, the two supply ships of the Protecteur class also belonged to this category. With a length of 172 m and a maximum displacement of almost 25,000 t, they were by far the largest units of the RCN. When they were over 40 years old, they reached the limit of their lifespan. The third supply ship, the Provider , was even older and therefore had to be taken out of service. To replace the three supply ships from the 1960s, a replacement by three new “Joint Support Ships” (JSS) was planned. With a displacement of 28,000 t and a length of 200 m, these ships would be significantly larger than their predecessors. As a result, these ships should not only be able to be used as supply ships, but also provide limited capabilities for strategic sea transport. The contract was put out to tender in mid-2006, after which four shipyards applied for the contract. At the end of 2006, two of them were asked to submit a detailed offer. Instead of the final award of the contract expected in 2008, the program ended for the time being. It was therefore inevitable that the Protecteur class would still be in service beyond 2012. After a fire on board the HMCS Protecteur , both units have been taken out of service.

Another project was the procurement of an amphibious helicopter carrier (Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD)). A design based on the French Mistral class was seen as the favorite . Since cuts in the defense budget meant that the joint support ship project required to maintain existing capabilities was not continued, the procurement of a helicopter carrier seems very unlikely in the near future.

The control of the Northwest Passage and thus the procurement of suitable vehicles is becoming increasingly important . In particular, the claim to the raw materials suspected in this region should also be substantiated. In 2006, the construction of three new heavy icebreakers was announced, a project that was stopped for the time being in 2009. In addition, the construction of up to eight Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships of the Harry DeWolf class was announced in 2007, the first of which was handed over in 2020. This is a class of lightly armed ships with the ability to break ice up to 1 meter thick. The design should be based on the Norwegian Svalbard . However, this project is criticized from various quarters as insufficient, so icebreaking capabilities and armament have turned out to be much weaker than the full-fledged icebreakers originally planned.

HMCS Oriole

On October 19, 2011, the Canadian government and the Department of National Defense (DND) announced the results of a tender process. Accordingly, the 33 billion Canadian dollar procurement program includes more than 21 new ships for the Canadian Navy. These were split between two shipyards. The Seaspan Marine Corporation in Vancouver , British Columbia, is building icebreakers for $ 8 billion Joint Support Ships ( supply vessels ) and other vessels for the Navy. The first ships should be ready for use in 2017. Irving Shipbuilding Inc. in Halifax , Nova Scotia is building more than 21 new military ships for the Canadian Navy. The first ships are to be delivered in 2015, the last in 2025. The contract for the two planned Joint Support Ships was awarded to the ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems design , which is essentially based on the German class 702 task force supplies . The two new ships were given the names of their predecessor ships, HMCS Protecteur and HMCS Preserver . The Canadian government now assumes that the utilities will be delivered from 2023. As an interim solution, a converted container ship, the Asterix , was put into service in 2018 .

The surface fleet also includes the HMCS Oriole , a training ship for the Canadian Navy. The HMCS Oriole is the oldest ship in active service in the Canadian Navy. The ketch , built in the 1920s, has a crew of 20 and is usually based in the CFB Esquimalt.

The Canadian Navy also uses eight Patrol craft training vessels for instruction and training purposes, which are based on the design of the Australian Pacific class and are referred to as the Orca class .

The HMCS Windsor

Submarine fleet

The Victoria- class forms the submarine fleet of the Canadian Navy and consists of four submarines stationed on Canada's west and east coast. The Canadian Navy bought the four British Upholder class submarines in 1998 for the relatively low price of £ 244 million. The Royal Navy had these submarines taken out of service due to reduced due to the end of the Cold War defense spending despite her very young age 1,993th In retrospect, however, it turned out that five years of mothballing in the UK had done more to the submarines than expected. This as well as other technical problems meant that the Victoria- class submarines could not achieve full operational readiness for years.

A Canadian Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone helicopter

Aircraft

28 Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone (delivery from 2013, replace Sea King)
27 CH-124 Sea King (will be retired from 2010)
18 CP-140 Aurora
3 CP-140A Aurora

Weapon systems

Firing system	weapon	Type
Mark 41 VLS (vertical system)	Boeing Integrated Defense Systems Mark 141 Harpoon SSM	Anti-ship missile
Mark 41 VLS	Raytheon Standard SM-2MR Block IIIA	Anti-aircraft missile
	Douglas Aircraft Company / Sperry Corporation Sea Sparrow	Anti-aircraft missile
	BAE Systems Bofors 5.7 cm gun	Naval gun
	General Dynamics Ponoma Division Phalanx CIWS	Close-range defense system
	Browning Arms Company 12.7 mm	heavy machine guns
	Oto Melara 7.6 cm L / 62 Oto Melara	fully automatic ship gun
	Alliant Techsystems Mark 46 torpedo	Submarine hunting
	BAE Systems Bofors 4.0 cm 60 Mk 5C cannon	40 mm gun
Raytheon / Hughes Aircraft 53.3 cm torpedo tubes	Mark 48 torpedo	Heavyweight torpedo
	Dorado Interim Remote Mine Hunting and Detection System (IRMDS)

Ranks and education

Officers

Canadian Armed Forces officers have ranks from OF-1 to OF-9. The OF-9 rank is the highest of the armed forces, the Chief of the Defense Staff , who can be from any branch of the armed forces such as the Army, Air Force or Navy.

The highest rank in the Canadian Navy is the OF-8, which is equivalent to a Vice Admiral . OF-6 to OF-9 belong to the flag officers . OF-3 (Lieutenant-Commander) to OF-5 (Captain (N)) belong to the Senior Officers , while OF-2 (Lieutenant (N)) and OF-1 (Sub-Lieutenant) belong to the Junior Officers . The Navy cadets are non-commissioned officers. All officers in the Canadian Armed Forces receive an official letter of appointment from Elizabeth II upon appointment as an officer . The document is presented in a ceremony by the Commander in Chief of the Canadian Armed Forces and the Secretary of Defense.

The junior officers will be trained at the College of the Royal Military College of Canada at the CFB Kingston military base , Ontario , at the Royal Military College Saint-Jean in Saint-Jean , Québec and the Naval Officer Training Center VENTURE in Work Point, on the Navy base in Esquimalt , British Columbia . For particularly specialized and very good candidates, there is the possibility of being appointed officer without having completed the training. This is only possible if the candidate has performed above average in the service of the Navy. The program is also called the Direct Entry Officer (DEO).

Officers rank structure of the Royal Canadian Navy
Commander-in-Chief in Chief	Admiral admiral	Vice Admiral Vice Admiral	Rear Admiral Rear Admiral	Commodore Flotilla Admiral	Captain sea captain
N / A	OF-9	OF-8	OF-7	OF-6	OF-5

C-in-C	Adm	VAdm	RAdm	Cmdre	Capt (N)

Commander frigate captain	Lieutenant-Commander Corvette Captain	Lieutenant of the Navy Lieutenant Commander	Sub-lieutenant first lieutenant	Acting sub-lieutenant lieutenant	Naval Cadet Marine Cadet
OF-4	OF-3	OF-2	OF-1		Cadet

Cdr	LCdr	Lt (N)	SLt	A / Slt	NCdt

Teams

The Royal Canadian Navy crew ranks range from OR-2 to OR-9. OR-9 (Chief Petty Officer 1st Class) is the highest rank that can be achieved. The ranks OR-8 and OR-7 are common as petty officers and, together with OR-6 Petty Officer 2nd Class, as senior team officers. OR-5 (Master Seaman) and OR-4 (Leading Seaman) are considered junior team officers. The ranks OR-3 are considered to be full seamans and lower seamans with OR-2.

All regular teams in the Canadian Armed Forces undergo basic military training at the Canadian Forces Leadership and Recruit School in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu. The recruits then receive special training at the respective deployment locations in the areas in which they are employed.

Not officer ranks in the Royal Canadian Navy
Chief Petty Officer 1st Class (Chief Staff boatman)	Chief Petty Officer 2nd Class (Oberbootsmann)	Petty Officer 1st Class (Boatswain)	Petty Officer 2nd Class (Obermaat / Maat)	Master Seaman (Chief Sailor)	Leading Seaman (seaman)	Able Seaman ( Able Seaman )	Ordinary Seaman (sailor)
OR-9	OR-8	OR-7	OR-6	OR-5	OR-4	OR-3	OR-2

CPO1	CPO2	PO1	PO2	MS	LS	FROM	OS