Canada's Naval History

Home > Explore History > The Navy Today > Continuing Commitments

Birth Of the Navy

First World War

Between the Wars

Second World War

Early Cold War

Later Cold War
- - From RCN to Maritime Command
  - A Changing Fleet

Navy Today
- - The Gulf War
  - Continuing Commitments

The Navy Today
Continuing Commitments

Beginning in the 1990s, long-standing efforts to renew the ships and equipment of Canada's navy began to produce results, with new vessels entering service. At the same time, the navy continued to fulfill national commitments to alliance operations and, following terrorist attacks on the United States on 11 September 2001, to "the war on terror".

Artifact Record

Maritime Coastal Defence Vessel

In the 1990s, Canada's navy acquired 12 Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels (MCDVs) for coastal surveillance, patrol, and minesweeping duties.

The ships' main armament is a deck-mounted Bofors 40 mm gun (centre right), while open space aft (left) accommodates modular equipment for a variety of missions. Like the Canadian patrol frigates, the MCDVs owed their origins to late 1970s plans to renew the navy's fleet of ships. These vessels' crews consist primarily of reservists serving for extended terms. The ships, similar in size to a Second World War corvette, also provide training opportunities for members of naval reserve divisions from across the country.

Untitled
Print by Ross Gervais
CWM 20030306-009