HMCS Harry DeWolf commissioning a celebratory moment after years of work
[caption id="attachment_26294" align="aligncenter" width="595"] Stadacona Band of the Royal Canadian Navy performs. Photo by Mona Ghiz, MARLANT Public Affairs[/caption]Ryan MelansonTrident Newspaper––For the first time in nearly 25 years, the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) has commissioned a new warship, with Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Harry DeWolf now entering active service following a commissioning ceremony in Halifax on June 26.The ship is the first of six Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships (AOPS) set to be delivered to the navy over the coming years, bringing with it new capabilities and a renewed focus on operations in the Arctic region. It’s the RCN’s first ice-capable vessel since the former HMCS Labrador was transferred away from DND in 1958 – a move signed off on by Vice-Admiral Harry DeWolf himself.“This is a moment in history where we pick up where VAdm DeWolf left off,” said Cdr Corey Gleason, Harry DeWolf’s first commanding officer. He’s been leading his crew in preparation for this moment since 2014, before the first steel for the ship was cut. He has spent the last year commanding Harry DeWolf through numerous tests and trials at sea.[caption id="attachment_26295" align="aligncenter" width="341"] The Honourable Arthur J. LeBlanc, Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia, presents Commander Corey Gleason, Commanding Officer HMCS Harry DeWolf, with the Commissioning Pennant.[/caption]Sailors have already gotten to know the new platform and proven its ability to operate in different environments, but that doesn’t take away from the significance of the formal commissioning and the tradition tied to the ceremony.“Tradition reinforces operations, and events like our commissioning ceremony draw inspiration and purpose from our own recent milestones, and from all of those that contributed to the National Shipbuilding Strategy. This ceremony is about all of us celebrating our contributions in a formal setting,” Cdr Gleason added.He was joined at the ceremony by senior Canadian Armed Forces and RCN leadership, including LGen Wayne Eyre, Acting Chief of the Defence Staff, and RAdm Brian Santarpia, Commander of Maritime Forces Atlantic and Joint Task Force Atlantic.Other aspects of the commissioning, which was...