The Royal Canadian Navy is considering expanding its training-ship operations to the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River, a move that would enable it to assist in patrolling the maritime border between Canada and the United States.
Vice-Admiral Angus Topshee, Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, said as part of its modernization effort, it is weighing increasing its fleet of training vessels to 24 from eight and deploying more of the ships all over the country, including the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River.
Canada’s existing Orca-class patrol ships are all at Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt near Victoria, B.C.
“Seventy per cent of the Canadian population is between the Quebec City-Windsor corridor, but there’s no navy presence on the water there,” he said. “In the summer, it would be the perfect place for us.”
The Orca vessel program is intended to help recruit and train naval officers and sailors and with this expansion “it can also be about contributing to surveillance of our border,” Vice-Adm. Topshee said.
Canada’s Great Lakes waters and the maritime border that bisects them are currently patrolled by several federal agencies, including the RCMP and Canada Border Services Agency, with support from provincial and municipal police.
Vice-Adm. Topshee says the waters of the Great Lakes define one of Canada’s four maritime boundaries, the others being in the Pacific Ocean, the Arctic Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean.
He spoke during a visit to Nova Scotia for the annual Halifax International Security Forum, an annual gathering of diplomats, foreign-policy experts and others from around the world.
The Forces are receiving a massive infusion of cash after Canada in 2025 committed to meeting targets set by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, including devoting 2 per cent of gross domestic product to defence expenditures – a goal reached this year – and 3.5 per cent on core military spending by 2035.
Vice-Adm. Topshee said the proposal envisions putting Orca training vessels in every naval reserve that touches the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River, as well as in other locations around the country. This could include deployments from Thunder Bay to Windsor to Hamilton, all the way up to Quebec City and beyond to Sept-Îles.
Modifications to an expanded fleet of Orcas may include affixing a removable machine gun and a secure communications system.
The current fleet of eight Orcas are not commissioned warships and do not carry the HMCS prefix, but the Navy Commander said he would like the new vessels to be commissioned ships.
Vice-Adm. Topshee said the Thousand Islands archipelago in the St. Lawrence River in eastern Ontario is an excellent place to train officers to navigate and avoid collisions.
“It’s not challenging unless there’s navigational hazards, such as islands, that you have to weave between and traffic that you have to consider,” he said.
Plus, the Canada-U.S. border traverses the Thousand Islands, which could provide the navy training in border management.
The navy does not carry out border law enforcement but supports maritime security through patrols and presence in Canadian waters.
Vice-Adm. Topshee said as part of this expansion of training-vessel operations, the navy might consider stationing some Orcas in Prince Rupert, B.C.
“It’s one of the most important ports in Canada,” he said. “We don’t have a presence up there right now, but that might contribute to sovereignty and security up on the north coast with a relatively small detachment.”
The Canadian Armed Forces are on a recruiting push as its regular force numbers of about 65,250 remain below its authorized strength of 71,500. Under a directive issued in 2024, the Forces also anticipate requiring a further 14,500 members to “implement current and future capabilities.”
Vice-Adm. Topshee said the expansion of the Orca training program will be important to help boost navy strength. “It’s not just a matter of getting people in the door. I need them to get experience quickly.”
Ottawa implemented significant pay increases this year to help recruit and retain soldiers, sailors and aviators.
www.theglobeandmail.com
