HMCS Summerside (MM 711)

HMCS Summerside is a Kingston-class coastal defence vessel of the Royal Canadian Navy that has served in the Canadian Forces since 1999. Summerside is the twelfth, and last, ship of her class. She is the second vessel to use the designation HMCS Summerside. She is assigned to Maritime Forces Atlantic (MARLANT) and is homeported at CFB Halifax.[2]

For other ships with the same name, see HMCS Summerside.

HMCS Summerside entering St. John's Harbour
History
Canada
Name: Summerside
Namesake: Summerside, Prince Edward Island
Builder: Halifax Shipyards Ltd., Halifax, Nova Scotia
Laid down: 28 March 1998
Launched: 25 September 1998
Commissioned: 18 July 1999
Homeport: CFB Halifax
Identification:
Motto: Spem Successus Alit (Success nourishes hope)[1]
Honours and
awards:		 Atlantic, 1941–44; Gulf of St. Lawrence, 1942, 1944; Normandy, 1944; English Channel, 1944–45[1]
Status: in active service
Notes: Colours: Gold and red[1]
General characteristics
Class and type: Kingston-class coastal defence vessel
Displacement: 970 long tons (990 t)
Length: 55.3 m (181 ft 5 in)
Beam: 11.3 m (37 ft 1 in)
Draught: 3.4 m (11 ft 2 in)
Propulsion:
  • 4 × Jeumont ANR-53-50 alternators, 4 × 600VAC Wärtsilä UD 23V12 diesel engines, 7.2 MW (9,700 hp)
  • 2 × Jeumont CI 560L motors, 3,000 hp (2,200 kW)
  • 2 × LIPS Z drive azimuth thrusters
Speed: 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Range: 5,000 nmi (9,300 km; 5,800 mi) at 8 kn (15 km/h; 9.2 mph)
Complement: 37
Sensors and
processing systems:
  • Kelvin Hughes navigation radar (I-band)
  • Kelvin Hughes 6000 surface search radar (E-F band)
  • Global Positioning System
  • AN/SQS-511 towed side scan sonar
  • Remote-control Mine Hunting System (RMHS)
Armament:

Design and description

The Kingston class was designed to fill the minesweeper, coastal patrol and reserve training needs of the Canadian Forces, replacing the Bay-class minesweepers, Porte-class gate vessels and Royal Canadian Mounted Police coastal launches in those roles.[3] In order to perform these varied duties the Kingston-class vessels are designed to carry up to three 6.1-metre (20 ft) ISO containers with power hookups on the open deck aft in order to embark mission-specific payloads.[4] The seven module types available for embarkation include four route survey, two mechanical minesweeping and one bottom inspection modules.[3]

The Kingston class displace 970 long tons (990 t) and are 55.3 metres (181 ft 5 in) long overall with a beam 11.3 metres (37 ft 1 in) and a draught of 3.4 metres (11 ft 2 in).[3] The coastal defence vessels are powered by four Jeumont ANR-53-50 alternators coupled to four Wärtsilä UD 23V12 diesel engines creating 7.2 megawatts (9,700 hp). Two LIPS Z-drive azimuth thrusters are driven by two Jeumont CI 560L motors creating 3,000 horsepower (2,200 kW) and the Z drives can be rotated 360°. This gives the ships a maximum speed of 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) and a range of 5,000 nautical miles (9,300 km; 5,800 mi) at 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph).[5]

The Kingston class is equipped with a Kelvin Hughes navigational radar using the I band and a Kelvin Hughes 6000 surface search radar scanning the E and F bands. The vessels carry an AN/SQS-511 towed side scan sonar for minesweeping and an AN/WLD-1 RMS Remote Minehunting System (RMHS). The vessels are equipped with one Bofors 40 mm/60 calibre Mk 5C gun and two M2 machine guns.[5][lower-alpha 1] The 40 mm gun was declared obsolete and removed from the vessels in 2014. Some of them ended up as museum pieces and on display at naval reserve installations across Canada.[6] The Kingston-class coastal defence vessels have a complement of 37.[3]

Operational history

Summerside was laid down on 28 March 1998 by Halifax Shipyards Ltd. at Halifax, Nova Scotia and was launched on 25 September 1998. She was commissioned into the Canadian Forces on 18 July 1999 at Summerside, Prince Edward Island and carries the classification MM 711.[2]

In August 2002, Summerside took part in Exercise "Narwhal Ranger", sailing into Arctic waters. This was the first time Canadian naval units had sailed into the Arctic in thirteen years.[2]

As part of Exercise "Tradewinds" which took place from 1–25 June 2014, Summerside took part in and led training of forces from around the Caribbean Sea.[7]

On 8 September 2015, Summerside deployed for large NATO naval exercises Joint Warrior and Trident Venture with Athabaskan, Windsor, Montréal, Halifax and Goose Bay.[8][9]

In January 2016, Summerside, alongside sister ship Moncton, sailed for the Caribbean to take part in Operation Caribbe.[10] On 7 March, off the coast of Nicaragua, a sailing vessel was intercepted in international waters. The vessel was boarded by US Coast Guard officials deploying from Summerside and 324 kg (714 lb) of cocaine was discovered and seized.[11] The ship returned to Halifax on 7 April.[12] In September Summerside was among the Canadian warships deployed to the NATO naval training exercise "Cutlass Fury" off the east coast of North America.[13] In February 2017, Summerside and Moncton deployed to the coast of West Africa in the Gulf of Guinea as part of the naval exercise Neptune Trident.[14] The two ships conducted missions against pirates and illegal fishing, along with making port visits to Sierra Leone, Senegal, Liberia and Ivory Coast.[15] During the deployment, Summerside took part in a joint training exercise with naval vessels from Morocco and Senegal.[16] Summerside returned to Halifax on 2 May with Moncton.[17]

On 26 January 2018, Summerside and sister ship HMCS Kingston departed Halifax for West Africa to take part in the naval exercise Obangame Express 2018 with the United States Navy and several African navies.[18] Their visit to Nigeria marked the first time Canadian warships have ever visited the country.[19] The vessels returned to Halifax on 17 April.[20] In October 2018, Summerside was among the Canadian ships deployed to the North Atlantic and Baltic Sea as part of the large NATO exercise, Trident Juncture.[21] On 17 December 2018 Summerside and Glace Bay were sailing home to Halifax from their deployment in European waters when they were called to the aid of the sailing vessel Makena which had been disabled 440 kilometres (270 mi) southeast of Halifax. Summerside and Glace Bay rescued the four crewmembers of Makena with support from US and Canadian aircraft.[22]

References

Notes
  1. The 60 calibre denotes the length of the gun. This means that the length of the gun barrel is 60 times the bore diameter.

Citations
  1. "Volume 2, Part 1: Extant Commissioned Ships – HMCS Summerside". Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces. 7 July 2006. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  2. Macpherson and Barrie, p. 304
  3. Macpherson and Barrie, p. 299
  4. Saunders (2008), p. 95
  5. Saunders (2004), p. 92
  6. Mallett, Peter (17 October 2018). "Big guns find new life". CFB Esquimalt Lookout. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
  7. Pugliese, David (25 June 2014). "Canadian Forces wraps up participation in Exercise Tradewinds". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  8. "HMCS Halifax, Athabaskan depart for NATO exercises". CBC News. 8 September 2015. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  9. "HMCS Windsor returning to Halifax port after NATO exercises". CBC News. 16 December 2015. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  10. Brown, Rhonda (27 January 2016). "Halifax-based naval ships join fight against drug smugglers in Caribbean, Pacific Ocean". Global News. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
  11. Pugliese, David (29 March 2016). "HMCS Summerside, HMCS Saskatoon assist in seizure of almost 700 kg of cocaine". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  12. "HMCS Summerside back in Halifax after anti-drug operation in Caribbean". CTV News. Canadian Press. 7 April 2016. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  13. "NATO warships converge on Halifax for military exercises". CTV News. 10 September 2016. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  14. Jones, Colleen (18 February 2017). "HMCS Summerside crew to see Nova Scotia history in Sierra Leone". CBC News. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
  15. Dinshaw, Fram (31 March 2017). "CFB Halifax welcomes new CO". The Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
  16. Pugliese, David (12 April 2017). "Royal Canadian Navy wraps up African exercise – boarding teams trained". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
  17. "HMCS Summerside and Moncton return from rewarding deployment to West Africa NEPTUNE TRIDENT 17-01" (Press release). Department of National Defence of Canada. 2 May 2017. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
  18. Ayers, Tom (26 January 2018). "PHOTOS: HMCS Summerside, Kingston head for Africa". Halifax Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
  19. Nwachukwu, John Owen (12 March 2018). "Canadian warships arrive Nigeria after 108 years". Daily Post. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
  20. Ahern, Brendan (17 April 2018). "Canadian naval vessels return from West Africa". Halifax Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 21 April 2018.
  21. Pugliese, David (25 October 2018). "Approximately 2,000 Canadian military personnel in Europe for major NATO exercise". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved 30 October 2018.
  22. Fraiman, Michael (20 December 2018). "The Royal Canadian Navy to the rescue! (Yes, really.)". Maclean's. Retrieved 28 December 2018.

Sources
  • Macpherson, Ken; Barrie, Ron (2002). The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces 1910–2002 (Third ed.). St. Catharines, Ontario: Vanwell Publishing. ISBN 1-55125-072-1.
  • Saunders, Stephen, ed. (2004). Jane's Fighting Ships 2004–2005 (107 ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: Jane's Information Group Inc. ISBN 0-7106-2623-1.
  • Saunders, Stephen, ed. (2008). Jane's Fighting Ships 2008–2009. Jane's Fighting Ships (111th ed.). Surrey: Jane's Information Group. ISBN 978-0-7106-2845-9. OCLC 225431774.
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