Construction of fourth AOPS begins
Irving Shipbuilding has begun construction of the fourth Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship (AOPS), the future HMCS William Hall, for the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN).
This is the fourth of six Harry DeWolf-class ships being built at the Halifax Shipyard in Canada for the RCN. The vessels have been designed to patrol Canada’s waters and northernmost regions. They will be used for a variety of missions including coastal surveillance, SAR, drug interdiction, support to international partners, humanitarian aid and disaster relief.
The construction of the fifth ship will begin later in 2019. The first vessel of this class is slated to join the RCN’s fleet in summer 2019 and AOPS 4 is expected to follow in 2022.
Work is also being carried out to complete the Nanisivik Naval Facility, which will support operations of the new AOPS and other government maritime vessels.
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