Royal Canadian Air Force News

French, Canadian, and U.S. Forces, along with local responders, successfully conducted a search and rescue operation to save the operator and passengers of a distressed vessel off the coast of Rota, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, on July 10.All 11 people from the center console fishing vessel are now safely in Rota.At 5:05 p.m. on July 10, Watchstanders at U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam's Joint Rescue Sub-Center Guam received a distress from the operator of the 21-foot vessel Full 20 Horizon…

Explosive charges aboard the ship enabled battle damage assessment (BDA) teams to respond to actual damageThe former Austin-class amphibious transport dock USS Denver (LPD 9) was sunk in a blaze of glory as a target ship during the recent Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) Exercise 2022. The 9,600-ton, 561-foot Denver, which was commissioned in 1968 and served until being retired in 2014, had been stored with other inactive ships at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, before being sunk about 50 miles north of Kauai in about 15…

Thirty-one fisherman have been rescued from a fishing vessel that caught fire and began to sink off the coast of Eastern Canada.At 7:05 p.m., Tuesday, the Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Halifax notified watchstanders at the U.S. Coast Guard First District Command Center that the 143-foot Atlantic Destiny was disabled with a fire on board, and was taking on water in 26-foot seas and 35-mile-per-hour winds.A U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod HC-144 Ocean Sentry fixed-wing crew…

The developer of augmented and mixed reality technology Kognitiv Spark will be providing the Royal Canadian Navy with the opportunity to test drive a Mixed Reality Remote Assistant Support (MIRRAS) system, as part of a project that aims to improve maintenance and repairs aboard active naval vessels.The project aims to validate technology adopted from Kognitiv Spark, whose software is designed for use with the Microsoft HoloLens.The software leverages Augmented Reality, Mixed Reality, and the integration of Artificial Intelligence to improve efficiencies with ship operations including repairs, maintenance and knowledge transfer.This system can be used by RCN Marine Technicians and Weapons Engineering Technicians…

Canada’s first Resolve-Class Naval Support Ship, Asterix, has been formally accepted by the Department of National Defense and has now entered full operational service with the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) and Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) following a period of at-sea trials and testing, announced Davie Shipbuilding and Federal Fleet Services. Asterix performed daily replenishment-at-sea (RAS) exercises with the RCN and conducted extensive RCAF CH-148 Cyclone helicopter operations to prove and demonstrate the capabilities of the Resolve-Class Naval Support Ship.

Walter Sellick, founder of Sellick Equipment, passed away on January 10, 2017. He was 98. Walter is survived by sons Howard and David, daughter Heather, and many grandchildren and great grandchildren. Born in 1918, Walter was raised on a farm in Harrow, Ontario. He served in the Royal Canadian Air Force from 1941-1945 and was a life member of Royal Canadian Legion Branch #338. Walter managed a Ford tractor dealership for many years until 1968 when at the age of 50 embarked on a new career with sons Howard and David…

At nearly 663,000 square miles, Alaska is the biggest state in the United States and over twice the size of Texas. The state’s size and the remoteness of its northern communities make emergency response challenging. In response to growing economic and tourism interests in the Arctic, Coast Guard District 17, Alaska Command and the State of Alaska and other state and federal partners will conduct a mass rescue exercise called Operation Arctic Chinook in Tin City and Kotzebue August 23-24.

The crew of Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City is hosting an international joint search-and-rescue exercise with members of the Royal Canadian Air Force beginning Tuesday in and around the Traverse City area. The Royal Canadian Air Force's 424th Transport and Rescue Squadron based at CFB Trenton, Ontario, will be flying a CC-130 Hercules aircraft and a CH-146 Griffon helicopter during the search-and-rescue exercises taking place from October 13 to October 15th. U.S. Coast Guard units participating include MH-65D Dolphin helicopters from Air Station Traverse City and vessels from Coast Guard Stations Charlevoix, Michigan, and Manistee, Michigan. Training operations will start Tuesday when Canadian and U.S. Coast Guard rescue crews will begin classroom and ground-rescue briefings.

Canada plans to spend billions of dollars on new patrol ships, polar satellites, transport upgrade, and winter gear for its troops amid rising demands for the Arctic’s riches. Both the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force are set to receive some major equipment upgrades to help maintain the nation’s resource-rich northern regions. Prime Minister Harper insists that the area’s stockpiles of oil, natural gas, and minerals are critical to the Canadian economy. US-based Defense News reported that on top of the shopping list are five new patrol ships for the Royal Canadian Navy, which will be outfitted with Lockheed Martin avionics at a cost of CAN $3.5 billion ($3.4 billion), as well as up to $50 million in technical upgrades for the Air Force’s CC-138 transport aircraft.

NATO is sending part of its naval rapid reaction force to the Baltic Sea as part of a drive to step up the defence of eastern European allies in response to the crisis in Ukraine, the military alliance said on Thursday. Separately, Canada said it had offered six CF-18 fighter planes as its contribution to NATO efforts to beef up its presence in eastern Europe and reassure nervous allies there that NATO would protect them in the event of any Russian aggression. The Pentagon said it would extend its own deployment of F-16 fighter jets to Poland through the end of the year, and encouraged other NATO allies to contribute to the detachment.

The U.S. Coast Guard rescued three people Tuesday who were stranded on Shelter Island, near Beach Haven after their 18-foot boat became grounded during a hunting trip. A man used a cell phone to report he and two other people were stranded on the island after they were hunting and their boat grounded during low tide. The men reported they were very cold despite being dressed appropriately for hunting in cold temperatures, but had no immediate medical concerns. An MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City located and hoisted the three men. They were transported to the air station, where their care was transferred to awaiting emergency medical services personnel. “They were about 15 miles away and we were there in seven minutes,” said Capt.

Capt. Edward Lundquist, U.S. Navy (Ret.) talks with Vice Admiral Jerry Beaman, the commander of the U.S. THIRD Fleet, about the 2012 “Rim of the Pacific” (RIMPAC) multi-national fleet exercise. How has the Rim of the Pacific or “RIMPAC” exercised evolved to the current involvement of more than 20 nations? Our naval heritage and our tradition really began in the War of 1812. In February of 1813, the frigate USS Essex was the very first Navy ship to sail into the Pacific. Our young nation giving notice that we had as much right to the seas as anyone else.

Canadian & Chilean rescuers presented with Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea 2012 at IMO HQ in London. Sergeant Janick Gilbert (posthumously), Master Corporal Max Lahaye-Lemay and Master Corporal Marco Journeyman, crew members of the Royal Canadian Air Force’s 424 (Transport and Rescue) Squadron, were nominated by the Government of Canada, in recognition of the exceptional bravery which was displayed by them, in saving the lives of two Inuit hunters stranded in an open boat in icy waters near Igloolik, Nunavut.

The IMO Council has decided that the award will go to Sergeant Janick Gilbert (posthumously), Master Corporal Max Lahaye-Lemay and Master Corporal Marco Journeyman, crew members of the Royal Canadian Air Force’s 424 (Transport and Rescue) Squadron, nominated by the Government of Canada; and to Mr. César Flores Flores, a rescue swimmer in the aerial detachment of the Chilean Navy, nominated by the Government of Chile. Sergeant Janick Gilbert (posthumously), Master Corporal Max Lahaye-Lemay and Master Corporal Marco Journeyman were nominated for saving the lives of two Inuit hunters, who were stranded in an open boat in icy waters near Igloolik…

The world's largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain the cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world's oceans. RIMPAC 2012 is the 23rd exercise in the series that began in 1971. RIMPAC 2012 will feature the first demonstration of a U.S. Navy "Great Green Fleet," during which U.S. surface combatants and carrier-based aircraft will test, evaluate and demonstrate the cross-platform utility and functionality of biofuels.