Canadian Forces Base Moose Jaw , also known as 15 Wing Moose Jaw, is a

Canadian Forces base A Canadian Forces base or CFB () is a military installation of the Canadian Armed Forces. For a facility to qualify as a Canadian Forces base, it must station one or more major units (e.g., army regiments, navy ships, air force wings). Minor i ...

located south of

Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan Moose Jaw is the List of cities in Saskatchewan, fourth largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. Lying on the Moose Jaw River in the south-central part of the province, it is situated on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Regina, Saskatchewan, Re ...

. It is operated as an air force base by the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...

(RCAF) and is home to RCAF Pilot training and 431 Squadron, the Snowbirds, which is the RCAF's air demonstration squadron. The base's airfield is named after

Air Vice-Marshal Air vice-marshal (Air Vce Mshl or AVM) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometime ...

Clifford McEwen and is one of only three military

aerodrome An aerodrome, airfield, or airstrip is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for public or private use. Aerodromes inc ...

s in Canada to be named after an individual, Valcartier (W/C J.H.L. (Joe) Lecomte) Heliport and Cold Lake/Group Captain R.W. McNair Airport being the others. The airport is classified as an

airport of entry In general, a port of entry (POE) is a place where one may lawfully enter a country. It typically has border security staff and facilities to check passports and visas and to inspect luggage to assure that contraband is not imported. Internatio ...

Nav Canada Nav Canada (styled as NAV CANADA) is a privately run, non-profit corporation that owns and operates Canada's civil air navigation system (ANS). It was established by statute in accordance with the ''Civil Air Navigation Services Commercializati ...

and is staffed by the

Canada Border Services Agency The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA; , ''ASFC'') is a federal law enforcement agency that is responsible for border guard, border control (i.e. protection and surveillance), immigration enforcement, and Customs, customs services in Canada. ...

(CBSA). The customs service is restricted to 15 Wing – Moose Jaw aircraft only.

History

A civilian flying club aerodrome was established on the site south-southwest of Moose Jaw in 1928 by the Moose Jaw Flying Club. Its location surrounded by flat open prairie proved to be an ideal training site.

RCAF Station Moose Jaw

The declaration of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

saw the Moose Jaw Flying Club initially contracted to provide pilot training for the

; however this was soon replaced by the far larger

British Commonwealth Air Training Plan The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP), often referred to as simply "The Plan", was a large-scale multinational military aircrew training program created by the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand during the Second Wo ...

(BCATP) which saw the Government of Canada acquire the aerodrome and completely reconstruct it into RCAF Station Moose Jaw in 1940 with the new aerodrome opening in 1941. Initially the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

trained exclusively at the base under the RAF's No. 32 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) (ca. 1942) using Harvards, and later,

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

s. No. 32 SFTS eventually broadened its intake to train 1,200 pilots for the air forces of Canada, the United Kingdom, Norway, New Zealand, Poland, France, Czechoslovakia, Belgium, the United States, and the Netherlands.

Aerodrome information

In approximately 1942 the aerodrome was listed at with a variation of 18 degrees east and elevation of . Six runways were listed as follows: RCAF Station Moose Jaw had two relief landing fields. One was located at Buttress, Saskatchewan and one at Burdick (Moose Jaw Municipal Airport) . In 1946 RCAF Station Moose Jaw was decommissioned and the aerodrome was returned to civilian service. Because of rising

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

tensions, the aerodrome was reactivated by the RCAF in 1953 as the site of military pilot training. RCAF Station Moose Jaw undertook additional construction to support its expanded personnel complement. The base was used by the RCAF and its

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

allies for pilot training, using both single-prop World War II-era Harvards and Canadair CT-133 Silver Star jet training aircraft. By the mid-1960s these were both replaced by the Canadian built CT-114 Tutor. The Institute for Stained Glass in Canada has documented the stained glass at RCAF Base Chapel.

CFB Moose Jaw

In 1968 the RCAF merged with the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

and the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; , ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 s, 12 s, 4 s, 4 s, 8 s, and several auxiliary ...

to form the unified

Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

. The base's name was changed to Canadian Forces Base Moose Jaw, usually shortened to CFB Moose Jaw. From 1968 until the formation of Air Command in 1975, CFB Moose Jaw fell under the direction of Training Command and served to house the

Tutor Tutoring is private academic help, usually provided by an expert teacher; someone with deep knowledge or defined expertise in a particular subject or set of subjects. A tutor, formally also called an academic tutor, is a person who provides assis ...

Jet Training Program. By the early 1990s, CFB Moose Jaw was operated by over 1,300 employees and made a significant economical impact on the region, but pending cutbacks in military spending spread rumours of possible closure of the base. In 1994, the Government of Canada awarded Bombardier with a 20-year contract to support the delivery of what is now the NATO Flying Training in Canada (NFTC) program. Many of the base's structures were renovated to accommodate new personnel and new training aircraft. Pilots from Denmark, Singapore, Great Britain, Italy, Hungary, Germany, Finland, and many other allied nations train at CFB Moose Jaw every year, ensuring the base's future with the Canadian Forces. In 2015, Bombardier sold its NFTC contract to CAE who are currently the prime contractor. From 1970 until its disbandment in 1993 Moose Jaw had a Base Rescue Flight flying three CH-118 Huey helicopters. During a reorganization at AIRCOM in the late 1990s, CFB Moose Jaw's various AIRCOM units were placed under a new primary lodger unit called "15 Wing"; consequently the base is now referred to as 15 Wing Moose Jaw.

Current operations

15 Wing Moose Jaw is home to the following units:

CFB Moose Jaw

Integral Units

* 15 Wing/NFTC Headquarters ** 15 Wing Air Reserve Flight * CFB Moose Jaw * 15 Operations Support Squadron ** 15 Wing Air Traffic Control Flight *** Military Terminal Control Unit *** Military Aerodrome Control Unit * 2 Canadian Forces Flying Training School (2 CFFTS) * 431 Air Demonstration Squadron (also known as the "

Snowbirds Snowbird may refer to: Places * Snowbird, Utah, an unincorporated area and associated ski resort in the United States * Snowbird Lake, a lake in the Northwest Territories, Canada * Snowbird Glacier, a hanging alpine glacier in the Talkeetna Moun ...

Canadian Armed Forces Lodger Units

* 23 Canadian Forces Health Services Centre, Detachment Moose Jaw * 1 Dental Unit, Detachment Moose Jaw * Real Property Operations Unit - West, Detachment Moose Jaw * Canadian Armed Forces Transition Centre, Detachment Moose Jaw * 14 Military Police Flight, 1 Military Police Squadron, Air Force Military Police Group

Other Lodger Units

* Defence Construction Canada, Moose Jaw Regional Office * Canadian Forces Morale and Welfare Services ** Personnel Support Program, Moose Jaw ** Canadian Forces Exchange System (CANEX) ** Military Family Resource Centre

NATO Flying Training in Canada (NFTC)

* CAE Inc - Prime Contractor ** Serco - Air Traffic Control, Air Information Services, and Ground Electronic Services ** ATCO Frontec - Facilities Management, Vehicle and Logistics Services, Fire/Crash Rescue Services, Airfield Infrastructure, Flight Training Facilities

Southport Aerospace Centre

Integral Units

* 3 Canadian Forces Flying Training School (3 CFFTS) -

Southport Southport is a seaside resort, seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. It lies on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain, West Lancashire coastal plain and the east coast of the Irish Sea, approximately north of ...

, Manitoba

Contracted Flying Training and Support (CFTS)

* KF Aerospace - Prime Contractor ** Canadian Base Operators - Air Traffic Control, Fire and Crash Support, Airfield Maintenance, Food Services, Administrative Support, IMIT, Housekeeping and Aeronatuical Information Services ** Bluedrop Training & Simulation - Coursewear development ** Canadian Helicopters - Helicopter maintenance and ground-based and simulation instructors.

Future Aircrew Training Program (FAcT)

The NATO Flying Training in Canada and Contracted Flying Training and Support contracts expire in 2027. Future Aircrew Training Program (FAcT) will replace these two contracts as well as create a new contracted system for Air Combat Systems Officers and Airborne Electronic Sensors Operators. After the REquest for proposals going out on 11 February 2022, the new contract is expected to be awarded in 2023.

Prospective bidders

* SkyAlyne Canada Limited Partnership ** Primary Partners ***

CAE Inc CAE Inc. is a Canadians, Canadian manufacturer of simulation technologies, modelling technologies and training services to airlines, aircraft manufacturers,and Arms industry, defence customers. CAE was founded in 1947, and has manufacturing opera ...

***

KF Aerospace KF Aerospace is a Canadian aerospace company providing aircraft maintenance, engineering, training, parts manufacturing, commercial flight operations, and pilot training. KF is a Transport Canada Design Approval Organization (DAO) and Recognized ...

** Potential Sub-Contractors and Strategic Partners *** ATCO Frontec *** Bluedrop Training & Simulation *** Canadian Base Operators *** Canadian Helicopters ***

Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...

*** PAL Aerospace ***

Serco Serco Group plc is a British multinational corporation, multinational military, defence, Healthcare, health, Space industry, space, private prison, justice, Human migration, migration, customer service, customer services, and transport company ...

* Babcock Leonardo Canadian Aircrew Training ** Primary Partners *** Babcock Canada *** Leonardo Canada ** Potential Sub-Contractors and Strategic Partners *** Top Aces *** Flight Safety International ***

L3Harris L3Harris Technologies, Inc. is an American technology company, defense contractor, and information technology services provider that produces products for command and control systems, wireless equipment, tactical radios, avionics and electroni ...

*** Athabasca Catering *** The Loomex Group *** Executive Flight Centre *** Bird Construction *** Dexterra

References

External links

15 Wing – Moose JawNATO Flying Training in CanadaCanadian Air Force Snowbirds Demonstration TeamMoose Jaw Flying Club
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moose Jaw Canadian Forces bases in Saskatchewan Military history of Saskatchewan Royal Canadian Air Force stations Airports of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan Military airbases in Saskatchewan Buildings and structures in Moose Jaw Moose Jaw No. 161, Saskatchewan Transport in Moose Jaw

History

RCAF Station Moose Jaw

Aerodrome information

CFB Moose Jaw

Current operations

CFB Moose Jaw

Integral Units

Canadian Armed Forces Lodger Units

Other Lodger Units

NATO Flying Training in Canada (NFTC)

Southport Aerospace Centre

Integral Units

Contracted Flying Training and Support (CFTS)

Future Aircrew Training Program (FAcT)

Prospective bidders

See also

References

External links