| Career (Canada) | Royal Canadian Navy |
|---|---|
| Namesake: | Athabaskan |
| Builder: | Davie Shipbuilding, Lauzon |
| Laid down: | 1 June 1969 |
| Launched: | 27 November 1970 |
| Commissioned: | 30 September 1972 |
| Refit: | 4 June 1994 (TRUMP) |
| Homeport: | CFB Halifax |
| Motto: | We Fight as One |
| Badge: | Blazon On a field argent, a North American Indian clad in buckskin breeches, leggings and beaded moccasins, but bare to the waist except for a necklace of bear's claws and blue shells, and ear ornaments of the last. The Indian wears the full-feathered headdress and is mounted bareback upon an Indian pony being halted from the trot. The Indian holds a red bow and arrow in the "ready" position, the latter pointing down. |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Iroquois-class destroyer |
| Displacement: | 5100 t |
| Length: | 129.8 m (425.9 ft) |
| Beam: | 15.2 m (49.9 ft) |
| Draught: | 4.7 m (15.4 ft) |
| Propulsion: | COGOG - 2 shaft 2 x Allison 570-KF cruise gas turbines (5.6 MW) 2 x Pratt & Whitney FT4A-2 boost gas turbines (37 MW) |
| Speed: | 29 kn (53.7 km/h) |
| Range: | 4,500 nmi (8,334.0 km) |
| Complement: | 280 |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
Signaal AN/SPQ 501 DA-08 radar Signaal LW-08 AN/SPQ 502 radar SQS-510 hull sonar SQS-510 VDS sonar |
| Armament: | 29 x VLS, Standard SM-2MR Block IIIA SAMs 1 x 76 mm/62 OTO Melara 6 x 12.75 in tubes firing Mark-46 Mod 5 torpedoes 1 x Phalanx CIWS (Block 1B) 6 x M2 Browning machine guns |
| Aircraft carried: | 2 x CH-124 Sea King helicopters |
| Aviation facilities: | hangar and flight deck |
HMCS Athabaskan (DDG 282) is an Iroquois-class destroyer that has served the Canadian Forces since 1972.
Athabaskan is the third ship of her class which is sometimes referred to as the Tribal-class or simply as the 280-class. She is the third vessel to use the designation HMCS Athabaskan.
Athabaskan was laid down on 1 June 1969 at Davie Shipbuilding, Lauzon and was launched on 27 November 1970. She was officially commissioned into the CF on 30 September 1972 and carries the hull classification symbol 282.
Athabaskan completed a refit known as the Tribal Class Update and Modernization Project (TRUMP) on 4 June 1994. At this time her classification changed from Destroyer Helicopter (DDH) to Destroyer Guided Missile (DDG).
She is assigned to Maritime Forces Atlantic (MARLANT) and is homeported at CFB Halifax.
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Athabaskan serves on MARLANT missions protecting Canada's sovereignty in the Atlantic Ocean and enforcing Canadian laws in its territorial sea and Exclusive Economic Zone. She has also been deployed on missions throughout the Atlantic and to the Indian Ocean; specifically, the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea after Iraq occupied Kuwait.
Athabaskan has also participated in several NATO missions, patrolling the Atlantic Ocean as part of Standing Naval Force Atlantic (STANAVFORLANT) and its successor Standing NATO Response Force Maritime Group 1 (SNMG1).
In August 1990, Athabaskan was hurriedly refitted with several advanced weapons for Operation FRICTION, the Canadian Forces' assistance to coalition Operation Desert Shield. The weapons included a Close-In Weapons System (CIWS).
Athabaskan was appointed flagship of the Canadian Naval Task Group, which included the destroyer HMCS Terra Nova (DDE 259) and supply ship HMCS Protecteur (AOR 509). The Task Group was sent to the central Persian Gulf, with other coalition naval forces, through the fall of 1990.
After Operation Desert Storm began in January 1991, the Task Group undertook escort duties for hospital ships and other vulnerable naval vessels of the coalition. The Ticonderoga-class cruiser USS Princeton (CG-59) detonated two Iraqi bottom-moored influence mines (MANTAs) at the north end of the Persian Gulf and was seriously damaged. Athabaskan was not assigned to the area, but the commanding officer of Princeton specifically requested her assistance. Unlike most ships of her size, she could simultaneously operate two large CH-124 Sea King helicopters, which could search out mines for long periods. Athabaskan and her helicopters helped both ships avoid mines until the minesweeper USS Adroit escorted them out of the minefield. As a gesture of solidarity, Athabaskan winched over several cases of beer for the crew of Princeton, since United States Navy vessels were dry.[NB 1] Athabaskan returned to her Task Group and remained on station in the Persian Gulf until after the war ended. After the hostilities were complete she was relieved by her sister ship HMCS Huron (DDH 281).
On 2 September 2005, Athabaskan was one of several MARLANT vessels and a Canadian Coast Guard ship that were deployed to Mississippi and Louisiana to assist disaster relief efforts after Hurricane Katrina. This was part of the larger Canadian response to Hurricane Katrina.[4]
On 14 January 2010, as part of Operation Hestia, following rapid outfitting Athabaskan and HMCS Halifax (FFH 330) were deployed to Haiti to assist with disaster relief efforts after a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. This was as part of the larger multi-pronged Canadian response of DART (Disaster Assistance Response Team).[5] The crew of the Athabaskan primarily concentrated relief efforts in the city of Léogâne where the crew assisted in triage efforts with the Canadian Medical Assistance Team, cleared rubble within Notre Dame Asylum, built three orphanages and lent aid to five others. Léogâne is a city of 135,000 that was slow to receive relief efforts and was almost completely destroyed by the earthquake. There were an estimated 20,000-30,000 casualties in the city.
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