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Canada launches second arctic and offshore patrol ship

Photo: Irving Shipbuilding

Irving Shipbuilding has launched the Royal Canadian Navy’s second arctic and offshore patrol ship (AOPS) at it Halifax shipyard.

The future HMCS Margaret Brooke, was launched on November 10 as the second of overall six ships in the class planned for construction.

The ship transitioned from Halifax Shipyard’s land level facility to a submersible barge on Friday and launched in the Bedford Basin on Sunday.

The ship is now pier side at Halifax Shipyard where work continues to prepare it for sea trials and handover to the Royal Canadian Navy late next year.

The lead ship in the class is in the final stages of construction and is preparing for initial builder sea trials at the end of November.

Inside Halifax Shipyard’s facilities, the Royal Canadian Navy’s third and fourth AOPS, the future HMCS Max Bernay and the future HMCS William Hall, are also under construction. The first two major sections of the future HMCS Max Bernay are scheduled to be moved outside in spring 2020.

Measuring 103 meters in length and displacing 6,615 tons, AOPS are the largest Royal Canadian Navy ships built in Canada in 50 years. They will patrol Canada’s oceans, including the Arctic, and are suited for missions abroad to support international partners, humanitarian aid, disaster relief, search and rescue, and drug interdiction.

They will carry a crew of up to 65 people, plus an additional 22 to support an enhanced naval boarding party, army troops, special operations forces and other government departments to support science and research.

Over the next few decades, Halifax Shipyard will build six AOPS for the Royal Canadian Navy, two AOPS for the Canadian Coast Guard, and 15 Canadian Surface Combatants for the Royal Canadian Navy.