One of the newest additions to the Royal Canadian Navy is docked along Windsor’s riverfront.
His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Margaret Brooke is docked at Dieppe Gardens until October 13 as part of the vessel’s current Great Lakes deployment.
HMCS Margaret Brooke is taking part in marine career fairs along Lake Ontario, Lake Superior, and Lake Huron, which has included stops in Thunder Bay, Sault Ste. Marie, and Owen Sound, along with stops in Toronto, Kingston, and Montreal.
As part of this tour, the Navy is addressing a significant recruitment challenge, and the aim is to reach out to people in places where they would not typically get to see and explore a Canadian warship.
Public tours of the vessel began Saturday, hosted by the crew, and will also be available on Sunday, Oct. 12, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Commanding Officer, Teri Share, told AM800’s Live and Local with Kyle Horner that this is an opportunity for the navy to showcase the ship.
“We’re going to give you a little peak into some of the really cool spaces on board, including our bridge, take a look at the gun, all that kind of stuff,” Share said.
“And also an opportunity as well to talk to the sailors, to be able for all of us to share our experiences with Ontarians, and people from Windsor to showcase this is pretty cool job and an amazing career.”
Share said the ship’s main mission is to bring the navy to the inland regions of Canada.
“What we’re trying to do is help showcase what the navy can bring, and be able to have some more people make some informed choices and hopefully the informed choice of joining the Royal Canadian Navy,” she said.
Share said there are many diverse careers in Canada’s maritime sector, including various career paths within the Canadian Coast Guard.
“Windsor is such a maritime city in general, so I mean, why not just showcase everything, and all the different career options that we have,” said Share.
The ship is scheduled to depart Windsor’s waterfront on Monday Oct. 13.
The patrol vessel was delivered to the Navy in 2021 and has taken part in multinational military exercises in the Arctic, provided hurricane relief when Hurricane Fiona struck Newfoundland, and circumnavigated South America before stopping in Antarctica and the Caribbean, where it assisted the U.S. Coast Guard to combat drug trafficking.
The Arctic and Offshore Patrol Vessel (AOPV) is named after Margaret Brooke, a Royal Canadian Navy Nursing Sister decorated for gallantry during the Second World War.
The ship is propelled by two diesel/electric engines, has a maximum displacement of 6,511 tonnes, is 103.6 meters in length with a 19-meter beam, holds a maximum crew number of 85, includes medical facilities, Wi-Fi, and a gym, reaches a top speed of 17 knots (31 km/h), and has a range of 6,800 nautical miles.
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