The sixth and last Arctic and coastal patrol ship of the Harry DeWolf class, designed for the Royal Canadian Navy, was launched at the Irving Shipbuilding shipyard in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
The patrol icebreaker Robert Hampton Gray was laid down in August 2023, two months ahead of schedule, The Defense Post notes. About 2,400 specialists are employed in the construction of the ship.
Patrol icebreaker "Robert Hampton Gray", Canada
Irving Shipbuilding
Completion work is currently underway to prepare the order for sea trials. The transfer to the Canadian Navy is scheduled for August 2025.
"The launching of the last patrol ship for the Arctic and maritime operations of the Royal Canadian Navy is a major achievement for our country's shipbuilding industry and an important milestone in the implementation of the National Shipbuilding Strategy," Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Public Utilities, Procurement and Fees, said at the ceremony.
Earlier, in September of this year, the Irving Shipbuilding shipyard handed over to the Canadian Navy the fifth ship of the Harry Dewolf class, the Frederick Rolette, laid down in June 2022.
Recall that the Government of Canada and Irving Shipbuilding signed a contract for the supply of six new Arctic-class patrol ships in 2015. The amount of the transaction amounted to 3.5 billion Canadian dollars (at that time – 2.92 billion US dollars).
The construction of the first two patrol icebreakers, "Harry Dewolf" and "Margaret Brook", started in September 2015 and September 2016, respectively. It was planned that they would replenish the Canadian fleet in 2019 and 2020. But the lead ship was commissioned only in June 2021 – after a year of trial operation. The patrol icebreaker Margaret Brook was transferred to the Canadian Navy in July 2021, and commissioned in October 2022.
At the beginning and end of May 2024, the Canadian fleet was reinforced by the third and fourth patrol icebreakers, Max Bernays and William Hall.
With a hull length of 103 meters and a displacement of 6,615 tons, the Harry Dewolf-class ships are called the largest in the Royal Canadian Navy. They are designed to patrol territorial waters, including the Arctic, and are suitable for missions abroad in support of foreign partners, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief and in the fight against drug trafficking.
The power plant of the patrol icebreaker consists of two diesel engines and four generators, which allow speeds of up to 17 knots in open water and 3 knots when moving through ice 1 meter thick. The cruising range is 6800 nautical miles, and the autonomy is 85 days. The crew consists of 65 people (additional accommodation is possible for 22 people – Marines, special operations service soldiers, medical staff or participants in scientific expeditions).
The ship is armed with a 25 mm Mk.38 artillery complex from British BAE Systems and two American 12.7mm Browning-M2 machine guns. One helicopter is based on board – CH-148 "Cyclone" or CH-146 "Griffon".
The ship can also accommodate rescue boats, landing craft, unmanned aerial vehicle CU-176 "Gargoyle", all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles.
