HMCS ''Margaret Brooke'' (AOPV 431) is the second for 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 ...

(RCN). The class was derived from the Arctic Offshore Patrol Ship project as part of the

National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy The National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS), formerly the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy (NSPS), is a Government of Canada program operated by the Department of Public Works and Government Services. The NSS was developed under the Steph ...

and is primarily designed for the patrol and support of Canada's Arctic regions. Named after Sub-Lieutenant

Margaret Brooke Margaret, Lady Brooke, White Ratuh Consort of Sarawak (born Margaret Alice Lili de Windt; 9 October 1849 – 1 December 1936) was the Ranee of the second White Rajah of Sarawak, Charles Anthony Johnson Brooke. She published her memoir, ''My ...

, an RCN nursing sister who tried to save another person during the sinking of the ferry during

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 ...

. ''Margaret Brooke'' was ordered in 2011,

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one ...

in 2016 and launched in 2019. The vessel began contractor sea trials in May 2021, and she was delivered to the Royal Canadian Navy for post-acceptance sea trials on 15 July 2021. The official naming ceremony for the ship was conducted on 29 May 2022 in conjunction with that for sister ship . The vessel was commissioned on 28 October 2022.

Design and description

The s are designed for use in the Arctic regions of Canada for patrol and support within Canada's

exclusive economic zone An exclusive economic zone (EEZ), as prescribed by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, is an area of the sea in which a sovereign state has exclusive rights regarding the exploration and use of marine natural resource, reso ...

. The vessel is long overall with a beam of . The ship has a

displacement Displacement may refer to: Physical sciences Mathematics and physics *Displacement (geometry), is the difference between the final and initial position of a point trajectory (for instance, the center of mass of a moving object). The actual path ...

of . The ship has an enclosed foredeck that protects machinery and work spaces from Arctic climates. The vessel is powered by a diesel-electric system composed of four

MAN A man is an adult male human. Before adulthood, a male child or adolescent is referred to as a boy. Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromosome from the f ...

6L32/44CR four-stroke medium-speed

diesel generator A diesel generator (DG) (also known as a diesel genset) is the combination of a diesel engine with an electric generator (often an alternator) to generate electrical energy. This is a specific case of an engine generator. A diesel compress ...

s and two electric propulsion motors rated at driving two

shafts ''Shafts'' was an English feminist magazine produced by Margaret Sibthorp from 1892 until 1899. Initially published weekly and priced at one penny, its themes included votes for women, women's education, and radical attitudes towards vivisection ...

. ''Margaret Brooke'' is capable of in open water and in first-year sea ice. The ship is also equipped with a

bow thruster Manoeuvering thrusters (bow thrusters and stern thrusters) are transversal propulsion devices built into or mounted to either the Bow (watercraft), bow or stern (front or back, respectively) of a ship or boat to make it more manoeuvrable. Bow th ...

to aid during manoeuvres and docking procedures without requiring

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, suc ...

assistance. The ship has a range of and an endurance of 120 days. ''Margaret Brooke'' is equipped with fin stabilizers to decrease roll in open water but can be retracted during icebreaking. ''Margaret Brooke'' is able to deploy with multiple payloads, including

shipping container A shipping container is a container with strength suitable to withstand shipment, storage, and handling. Shipping containers range from large reusable steel boxes used for intermodal shipments to the ubiquitous corrugated box design, corrugated b ...

s, underwater survey equipment or

landing craft Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. ...

. Payload operations are aided by a crane for loading and unloading. The ship is equipped with a vehicle bay which can hold can

pickup truck A pickup truck or pickup is a Truck_classification#Table_of_US_GVWR_classifications, light or medium duty truck that has an enclosed cabin (truck), cabin, and a back end made up of a cargo bed that is enclosed by three low walls with no roof (th ...

all-terrain vehicle An all-terrain vehicle (ATV), also known as a light utility vehicle (LUV), a quad bike or quad (if it has four wheels), as defined by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), is a vehicle that travels on low-pressure tires, has a seat ...

s and

snowmobile A snowmobile, also known as a snowmachine (chiefly Alaskan), motor sled (chiefly Canadian), motor sledge, skimobile, snow scooter, or simply a sled is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. Their engines normally ...

s. The ship also has two multi-role rescue boats capable of over . The ship is armed with one BAE Mk 38 gun and two

M2 Browning The M2 machine gun or Browning .50-caliber machine gun (informally, "Ma Deuce") is a heavy machine gun that was designed near the end of World War I by John Browning. While similar to Browning's M1919 Browning machine gun, which was chambered ...

machine guns. The patrol ship has an onboard

hangar A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word ''hangar'' comes from Middle French ''hanghart'' ("enclosure near a house"), of Germanic origin, from Frankish ...

and flight deck for helicopters up to the size of a

Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone The Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone is a twin-engine, multi-role shipborne helicopter developed by the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation for the Canadian Armed Forces. A military variant of the Sikorsky S-92, the CH-148 is designed for shipboard operations ...

. ''Margaret Brooke'' has a complement of 65 and accommodation for 85 or 87.

Service history

The order for the Arctic Offshore Patrol Ships was placed on 19 October 2011 with Irving Shipyards of

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

, as part of the

. The ship was constructed in 62 blocks, which were then pieced together into three larger blocks. These three "mega blocks" were fitted together to form the

hull Hull may refer to: Structures * The hull of an armored fighting vehicle, housing the chassis * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a sea-going craft * Submarine hull Ma ...

of the ship. On 13 April 2015 the government announced that after the first ship named ''Harry DeWolf,'' a second ship would be named ''Margaret Brooke''. During World War II,

, a navy nursing sister, was decorated for her actions during the sinking of the passenger ferry . The vessel's

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

was

on 29 May 2017 and the vessel was launched on 10 November 2019. The ship began contractor

sea trial A sea trial or trial trip is the testing phase of a watercraft (including boats, ships, and submarines). It is also referred to as a "shakedown cruise" by many naval personnel. It is usually the last phase of construction and takes place on op ...

s in May 2021. The vessel was delivered to the Royal Canadian Navy for post-acceptance sea trials on 15 July 2021. The naming ceremony was held on 29 May 2022 in conjunction with that for sister ship . The vessel, though not formally commissioned, was among the RCN ships deployed to the Arctic as part of the multinational

military exercise A military exercise, training exercise, maneuver (manoeuvre), or war game is the employment of military resources in Military education and training, training for military operations. Military exercises are conducted to explore the effects of ...

Operation Nanook in August 2022. In September 2022, ''Margaret Brooke'' was tasked for hurricane relief efforts, after Hurricane Fiona's devastating impact to the Maritimes. The vessel provided assistance including damage assessment and welfare checks to the most impacted communities along the south coast of

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

, where water access was the only means of entering the area. The vessel was commissioned on 28 October 2022. In early 2024, ''Margaret Brooke'' was involved in a drug interdiction in the Caribbean Sea. In June, the ship was deployed to Havana Harbour where Russian vessels, including the submarine and the frigate , were also present.

Minister of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

Bill Blair William "Bill" Sterling Blair (born April 9, 1954) is a Canadian politician and former police officer who served as the Minister of National Defence (Canada), Minister of National Defence from 2023 to 2025. A member of the Liberal Party of Can ...

said the ship was deployed as an act of deterrence directed at Russia. On 11 January 2025 ''Margaret Brooke'' departed Halifax, as part of Operation Projection. The mission marks the first

circumnavigation Circumnavigation is the complete navigation around an entire island, continent, or astronomical object, astronomical body (e.g. a planet or natural satellite, moon). This article focuses on the circumnavigation of Earth. The first circumnaviga ...

of South America and visit to

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

by a Royal Canadian Navy vessel.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Margaret Brooke, HMCS Harry DeWolf-class offshore patrol vessels 2019 ships Ships built in Nova Scotia Fleet of the Royal Canadian Navy