From Stoker to Legacy, the “Trailblazing” career of retired Petty Officer Arthur A. Horn

Arthur Horn receiving one of many recognitions for his work with the Royal Canadian Navy.

Paul Dagonese, 
Lookout Staff 

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As Canadians, we honour those who paved the way for future generations, setting new standards and shaping the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) into what it is today. Among these trailblazers is Petty Officer 2nd Class (Retired) Arthur A. Horn, a Bellville, Ontario native who dreamed of becoming a sailor at just 12 years old. Enlisting in the RCN at 17, Horn not only fulfilled his dream but went on to redefine how Canadian Armed Forces instructors train their soldiers, leaving an indelible mark on military education.

Now 81, when Art’s asked how long his military career spanned, he responds “42 days short of 23 years”. But he remembers like it was yesterday how it all started with the Belleville Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps. As a Cadet aboard ships like HMCS St. Lawrence, he experienced his first “love” for Navy life. Later, in September 1960, during his first official posting at HMCS Cornwallis, his “taste” for Navy life truly began.

But it wasn’t until 13 years later, July of 1973, that his career changed.

On an Any Trade Required billet, Art was posted to the Canadian Forces School of Instructional Technique at CFB Borden. They were short on instructors then, and, as Art says, “I was asked—I wasn’t ordered—if I would like to take a course to do some instructing. And I said ‘Sure, I’ll give it a try. I’ll try anything once’. So, they started me on a Standard Instructional Technique (SIT) One course right away, and two thirds of the way through it they pulled me off and threw me to the wolves in front of a classroom instructing.”

That room of ‘wolves’ was really a group of corporals and sergeants, even two officers, which he says prepared him for a career to instruct every rank right up to major.

During his time there, Art was loaded onto a SIT Two course. He was then selected for a Junior Leaders Course, designed to develop and enhance leadership skills within the CAF. Among 260 total trainees—and as the “only Navy guy” in the course—Art ranked second out of the 60 individuals in his platoon.

His exceptional performance in the course highlighted his leadership skills and personable nature, earning him the honour of serving as Parade Commander for the graduation ceremony.

“I thought it was pretty good, considering here I am, a Stoker,” he said.

Stokers were today’s marine technicians, those who specialized in engine-room duties, and whose term originated from the days when sailors were tasked with shifting coal to fuel the ship.

He carried on with his engineering training up to Trade Group 4 and was promoted to Petty Officer 2^nd Class when he left Borden for HMCS Assiniboine. He was then posted to Fleet School as an instructor, reposted to HMCS Stadacona, and took an Instructor Supervisor Course. In 1980 he was named Instructor of the Year.

And Art wasn’t just good at training members, he could design a course too.

While posted to HMCS Stadacona, he helped develop programs like a JP-5 Aviation Fuel Handling course, which set up the program he later taught at the Fleet School. He also recounts how he was one of the first instructors who taught Helicopter Hauldown and Rapid Securing Device (HHRSD) courses.

Art’s career is a special one, so much so that in his retirement he received the Special Service Medal (SSM NATO), an award where the CAF recognizes its member for taking part in activities under special circumstances.

Art’s dedication to achieving high levels of performance and recognition didn’t end here. In 1965, while serving aboard HMCS Cape Scott, he was selected as a member of an Honourary Guard to commemorate Winston Churchill’s funeral—an achievement that he accomplished just five years into a Naval career that would eventually span a total of two decades, two years, and 323 days.

Art retired from military life at 40 and from the workforce at 77, giving him ample time to reflect on his years with the CAF. He’s often looked over his PERs (Personal Evaluation Reports) with fond memories. “The things that are in there, some of the comments, I can’t believe it was me! I can’t really recall that I walked on water, but some of the stuff they said was a walk-on-water kind of thing,” he said.

It’s dedication like Art’s that laid the groundwork for the calibre of instruction the CAF is producing today. The final position he held was Instructor Supervisor, which was the highest CAF designation for instructors at the time. This was a time before the Level Three Classification instruction that’s possible today. Though they didn’t have that title back then, he was one of the first RCN instructors performing Level Three caliber training, and often, he says, beyond. He wants people to remember that even back in the late 1970s and 1980s, stokers like him were doing good things.

“I think I had a storied career if nothing else. I’d done some things that I’m very proud of based on the achievements I had.”

Arthur Horn now and then.