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For Posterity's Sake 
A Royal
Canadian Navy Historical Project
HMCS
ATHABASKAN 282
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WE FIGHT AS ONE |
HMCS Athabaskan 282 during transit to
participate in the Sub Commanders Course in the Caribbean, 09 Nov
2016
Photographer: Cpl Tony Chand, Formation Imaging
Services, HS05-2016-1056-2870
© DND Crown Copyright 2016 |
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Battle honours and awards: Arctic 1943-44,
English Channel 1944, Korea 1950-53, Gulf and Kuwait
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Laid down: 01
Jun 1969
Launched: 27
Nov 1970
Commissioned: 03
Sep 1972
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TRUMP
refit: 15 Oct 1991
TRUMP
refit completed: 04 Jun 1994
Paid off: 10
Mar 2017
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Third of her class, and built by the Davie
Shipbuilding Co., Lauzon, Athabaskan was commissioned on 30 Sep 1972. On 26
Nov 1981, she was dispatched, along with
Algonquin and Preserver, to the aid of the M.V. Euro Princess, which
was badly holed and drifting down on the drill-rig Rowan Juneau, off
Sable Island. Rescue helicopters took off the ship's crew, while
Athabaskan’s Sea King evacuated 44 from the drill-rig despite
60-knot winds. This procedure had to be done “free-deck” at both
ends, owing to a malfunction of her Beartrap. The abandoned merchant
ship was recovered by CGS Alert.
On 24 Aug 1990, Athabaskan
departed Halifax as one of three ships representing Canada in the Persian Gulf
conflict, returning on 07 Apr 1991. Not resting on the laurels of her
predecessors, the crew of the Athabaskan proved their metal on 18 Feb 1991. On that morning, USS Princeton was patrolling 28 nautical
miles off Failaka Island in the Persian Gulf when, at 7:15 a.m. local time, two
MN103 Manta bottom-mounted influence mines detonated, one just under the port
rudder and the other just forward of the starboard bow. The blasts cracked the
superstructure, buckled three lines in the hull, jammed the port rudder, flooded
the #3 switchboard room through chilled water pipe cracks, and damaged the
starboard propeller shaft. BM3 Ford was seriously injured, along with two other
crewmembers who sustained various injuries. At great risk to his ship and crew,
the CO of Athabaskan navigated her, with the use of the Seaking helicopters to
locate mines, though the minefield to deliver damage-control supplies to the
severely damaged USS Princeton. Athabaskan then guided USS Princeton thorough
the minefield until relieved by the minesweeper USS Adroit.
In Oct 1991 she
was turned over to MIL, Lauzon, for her TRUMP refit, after which, on
03 Aug 1994, she was provisionally accepted by the Navy. In the
fall of 1995 she took part, with Kootenay, in the two-month Exercise
UNITAS, along with ships from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Spain, the
U.S. and Uruguay. On 15 Mar 1999 Athabaskan departed Halifax for a
six month deployment with SNFL,
rejoining the Force again at the beginning of 2000. On 03 Aug 2000
she was handed a rather bizarre assignment: to board (via
helicopter) the GTS Katie 160 kilometres off Newfoundland. The
freighter had a cargo of Canadian military equipment destined from
Kosovo to Bécancour, Que., which her chartered had refused to land
because of a dispute over payment. She was compelled by the boarding
party to deliver her cargo as originally intended. In Sep 2005, with Toronto, Ville de Québec
and the CCGS Sir William Alexander, she deployed to Louisiana to
assist disaster relief efforts after Hurricane Katrina. On 21 Apr
2006, as flagship of the NATO Standing Maritime Group One (SNMG 1)
she was moored at Devonport UK to mark the 80th birthday of HM Queen
Elizabeth II. In Jan 2010, with Halifax, she deployed to provide
disaster relief following the major earthquake in Haiti. That same
year, on 29 Jun 2010, she was the the command ship for HM Queen
Elizabeth II for the International Fleet Review marking the Canadian
Naval Centennial. Following a refit in St Catherine’s, Ontario,
while being towed back to Halifax in Dec 2012, she broke loose
from her tow off Cape Breton Island, sustaining some hull damage.
HMCS Athabaskan was paid off in
Halifax, NS on 10 Mar 2107. She was the last of the Iroquois Class
destroyers.
Historical note: The 5"54 cal gun on the 280s were named
after the Oto Melara technicians who built and did the FSR work in
Canada. The names for the guns were as follows: Iroquois
- Pasquale, Huron - Tulio, Athabaskan - Leno and Algonquin - Luigi.
Photos and Documents
Ship's
company photos
Commissioning Booklet
SNFL 1983 Commemorative Book
Paying Off Book
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Commanding Officers |
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Cdr Robert Demytre Yanow - 30 Sep 1972 - 06 Sep
1974
Cdr G.L. Edwards - 06 Sep 1974 - 29 Mar
1976
Cdr John Charles Slade - 29 Mar 1976 - 07 Jul
1978
Cdr James Bernard O'Reilly - 07 Jul 1978 - 07 Jul
1980
Cdr John Windsor McIntosh - 07 Jul 1980
- 02 Aug 1981 Cdr K.R. Scotten - 02 Aug
1981 - 31 Mar 1984 LCdr R.D. Buck -
1984 Cdr David Cogdon
- 31 Mar 1984 - 16 May 1986 Cdr Gregory
Ralph Maddison
- 16 May 1986 - 14 Apr 1988 Cdr
Jerome Douglas Peacocke
- 14 Apr 1988 - 11 Jul 1990 Cdr
K.J. Pickford - 11 Jul 1990 - 06 Sep 1991
LCdr A.G. Munroe - 06 Sep 1991 - 09 Jul
1992
LCdr J.G. King - 09 Jul 1992 - 30 Jun
1993 LCdr H.C. Edmundson
- 30 Jun 1993 - 16 Nov 1993 Cdr P.C. Leblanc - 16 Nov 1993 - 15 Dec
1995 |
Cdr D. Rouleau
- 15 Dec 1995 - 01 Dec 1997 LCdr
B.A. Mosley - 1997 Capt Jaques .J. Gauvin
- 01 Dec 1997 - 18 Aug 1999
Capt D.W.
Robertson - 18 Aug 1999 - 06 Jan 2000
Cdr P.V. Dempsey - 06 Jan 2000 - 30 Aug
2001
LCdr S. Bishop - 30 Aug 2001 - 20 Aug
2002
Capt A.B.
Donaldson - 20 Aug 2002 - 15 Dec 2004 Capt D.C. Gardam
- 15 Dec 2004 - 14 Jul 2006 Capt H.T. Harsch
- 14 Jul 2006 - 19 Jul 2007
Cdr S. Jorgensen - 19 Jul 2007 - 27 Aug
2009
Cdr P.R. Crain - 27 Aug 2009 - 17 Dec
2010
Cdr M. Davie - 17 Dec 2010 - 06 Jul
2012 Cdr M. Plaschka
- 06 Jul 2012 - 2015 Cdr J.
Couillard - 2015 - 10 Mar 2017 |
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In memory of those who have crossed the bar
They shall not be
forgotten |
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A-B |
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Adams,
Clinton James
1946-2002 |
Allen,
Cecil Robert Copp
1956-2017
Served in Athabaskan during the
Gulf War |
Bilodeau, Benoit
____-2015 |
Blakeney,
Cameron Lyall 1943-2018 |
Bland, Edward Albert 1936-2018
Served in Athabaskan c1972 - 1973 |
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C-D |
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Cameron,
John Edward Ingham
1939-2011 |
Carter,
Lorne
Fulton
1936-2012 |
Case,
Lyle Gladwin
1955-2010 |
Ciccolella,
Antonio Vincenzo
1946-1999 |
Cockburn,
Gordon Blake
____-2019 |
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Cogdon,
David
1947-2018
8th Commanding Officer |
Collins,
Stephen M.
1971-2016 |
Cox,
Brian Alfred
____-1998
Commissioning Crew as PO2
Electrician |
Cox,
Donald Elwood
____-2013 |
Deiter,
Clayton Lloyd
1943-2014 |
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Dooley,
James Samuel
1951-2018 |
Downie,
Robert E.
____-2003 |
Dowthwaite,
Jon Anthony
____-2015 |
Dungy, Greg
____-2015
CWIS Tech on Athabaskan
during Op Friction |
Dunn,
George R. ____-2003
Commissioning Crew as LS.ET |
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Doucette,
Raymond Joseph Frank
1931-2016
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Dwyer,
Tony 1963-2018
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E-F |
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Edwards,
Gordon Lewis
1931-2011 |
Falldien,
Einar Sherwood
____-2013 |
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G-H |
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Gebler,
Michael K.
1949-2011 |
Greenlaw,
William Albert
1943-2018
Served in Athabaskan in 1975 as
CERA.
Commissioning crew as a C2ERA |
Hobson,
David Patrick
1932-2017
Commissioning crew as a LSBN |
Hurdis,
Gerald
____-2017
Commissioning crew as a LSCK |
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K-L |
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Kaiser,
William John
____-2006 |
Kostal,
Joseph Wilfred
1935-2014
Commissioning Crew as a PO2
Electrician |
Laforme,
George Richard
1942-2016
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Latour,
Joseph Jean-Yves
1954-2017
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Lawlor,
Patrick
____-2014 |
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M-N |
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MacFadyen,
Steven Ellis
____-2009 |
Mailloux,
Richard Joseph
____-1992 |
Mayville,
Keith Carl
____-2017 |
McGregor,
Douglas B.
1943-2006 |
McQuade,
Shawn Michael
1966-2017 |
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Merritt,
James
1941-2016
Served in
Athabaskan 1976-1978 |
Middleton,
Maurice
1940-2018
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Mielke,
Gordon Arnold
1941-2016 |
Mohr,
Richard Walter
____-2008 |
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O-P |
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O’Leary, Paul
Cameron
____-2017
Served in Athabaskan as a P2SG |
Pasquarelli,
Marc-Andre ____-2016 |
Patenaude,
Marc
____-2017 |
Peacocke,
Jerome Douglas 1949-1994
9th Commanding Officer |
Peterson,
Buddy Lionel
____-2017
Served in Athabaskan during NATO
1983 |
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Pringle,
James C.
____-2013 |
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Q-R |
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Racine, John
____-2015 |
Rybczyn,
Alexander Roman
1956-2014 |
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S-T |
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Shergold,
Terrance Anthony
1938-2002
Served in Athabaskan as Cox'n |
Shiers,
Arthur E.
1938-2013 |
Simpson,
Jim
____-2015 |
Slade,
John Charles
1937-2003
3rd Commanding
Officer |
Smith,
Sean
1988-2017
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Spears,
Patrick Harold
1949-2013
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Stanick,
Steve
1962-2013
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Starr,
Edward R.
1933-2006
Commissioning crew as P1ET
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Tapscott,
Gene Alan
____-2018
Served in Athabaskan in 1980
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Tessier,
Yves
Georges
1936-2010
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Tofflemire,
Roscoe Edwin
____-2015
Commissioning crew as a P1RP
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U-V
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Urquhart,
Glen Cameron
1942-2017
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W-X |
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Waters,
Brian James
____-2004
Commissioning crew |
Willdey,
Thomas
1943-2011 |
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Y-Z |
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Yanow,
Robert D.
1933-2017
1st Commanding Officer |
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Former Crew Members
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Barter, Bill
Caldwell, Eldon, MSET
De L'Eveille, Sean Jennifer - 2004
Dempsey, Mike, MSET - 1991
Finch, Corey, OSET - 1991
Grondin, Roger, ABET - 1991
Hobson, Steve, MSET - 1991
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Kennedy, Dan, P2ET - 1991
Lapierre, Brian - Jan 1983 - Apr 1983
Reaume, Wayne, 27146-H
Rutherford, Robert (Bob), LCdr, Combat O - Sep
1972 - Jul 1974 / XO - Jul 1974 - Jul 1976 
Samms, Emanuel, P2ET - 1991
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Sinagra, Danny, RM, 1982 - 1984,
1987-1990
Tremblay, Gilbert (Gigi), PO1 NESOP - 22 Jan
2001 - 23 Sep 2001
Tremblay, Stephane, LSET
Tufts, Ernie, OSET - 1991
Wiper, Steve, LSET - 1991 |
Photos
and Documents
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Athabaskan being fitted out at the Davies
Shipbuilding Company, Quebec - summer, 1971
Courtesy of Richard Larcheveque
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Battle Board for HMCS Athabaskan
282
Maritime Command Museum, CFB
Halifax, NS
Courtesy of Jarrod David
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HMCS Athabaskan 282
Courtesy of Mike Ellis
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HMCS Athabaskan 282 circa 1974
Courtesy of Mike Ellis
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HMCS Athabaskan 282 - DRES Team, FC / WS Dept. circa 1974
Courtesy of Mike Ellis
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HMCS Athabaskan 282 - Welcome Aboard Booklet
Courtesy of Nigel Whiteley, LCdr, RCN, Ret'd |
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HMCS
Athabaskan 282 - circa 1975
Courtesy
of Nigel Whiteley, LCdr, RCN, ret'd
DND/RCN
Photo
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HMCS Athabaskan 282 departing Gibraltar, 1982
Photo, with the Rock of Gibraltar in the
background, was taken by Brian Lapierre from one of the ship's Sea
Kings
Courtesy of Brian Lapierre
© Brian Lapierre 1982
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Burial at sea from HMCS Athabaskan 282 circa
1983
Courtesy of Stephane Tardif
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HMCS Athabaskan 282 and HMCS Fraser 233 during
Exercise Team Work '88
Credit: Trident Magazine Photographer:
Cpl Herbert
Courtesy of Jarrod David
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HMCS Athabaskan 282 RASing with USS Wisconsin
during the Gulf War 1990-1991, Persian Gulf
Courtesy of Gerald Doutre, CPO1, RCN
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HMCS Athabaskan 282 Welcome Aboard booklet
(Post-TRUMP refit)
Courtesy of Jarrod David
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HMCS Athabaskan boarding GTS Katie during Op
MEGAPHONE, 160 km off Newfoundland, 03 Aug 2000
Courtesy of Gerald Doutre, CPO1, RCN
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HMCS Athabaskan arriving in Halifax, Feb
2005
Courtesy of Brian Lapierre
© Brian Lapierre
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Newspaper article on the visit of HMCS
Athabaskan 282 to Picton, Ont.
The Wellington Times, 28 Mar 2012
Courtesy of John Lyons
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HMCS
Athabaskan celebrated her 40th and 41st birthday during a dependent day sail
on 04 Oct 2013.
They couldn't celebrate the 40th properly due to
refit last year.
Courtesy
of Rejean Trudeau
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HMCS
Athabaskan 282 - Exercise Joint Warrior - 2015
Courtesy
of Scott Murphy
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HMCS
Athabaskan 282 participating in the sail past at Halifax at the start of
Exercise Cutlass Fury - 12 Sep 2016
Courtesy
of Clarence Hemeon
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HMCS
Athabaskan 282 during
transit to participate in the Sub Commanders Course in the Caribbean, on
November 9, 2016
Photographer:
Cpl Tony Chand, Formation Imaging Services, HS05-2016-1056-2870
©
DND Crown Copyright 2016
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Commanding
Officers of HMCS Athabaskan 282
Courtesy
of Brian Lapierre
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David Porter (left) the 1st and Commissioning
Chief Electrician and CPO2 Russell Smythe (right), the Paying-off
Chief Electrician
Taken in the MCR in front of the Main Switchboard
during the former members cruise in March 2017 - just prior to HMCS
Athabaskan being paid off
Courtesy of Brian Lapierre
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Montage
that was presented to Mr. Ernie Takalo, a survivor of the sinking of HMCS
Athabaskan G07, onboard HMCS Haida during a Remembrance Ceremony for the
crew of Athabaskan G07. The montage has the last crew photo taken of HMCS
Athabaskan G07 and a crew photo from HMCS Athabaskan 282
Courtesy of Blair Gilmore
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Newspaper
article from the Trident Magazine on a memorial service conducted on HMCS
Athabaskan 282 on 16 Oct 2015, off the coast of France, for those lost on
HMCS Athabaskan G07 by Slt Blair Gilmore, HMCS Athabaskan.
Courtesy
of Blair Gilmore
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Surviving
crew members for HMCS Athabaskan G07 onboard HMCS Athabaskan 282 in
the English Channel near where HMCS Athabaskan G07 was sunk - 1974
From the collection of Greg Mackenzie
Courtesy of David H. Brown
Click on the above photo to view a larger
image
In
2003, Greg Mackenzie, a commissioning crew member for HMCS
Athabaskan 282, received a tour of HMCS Athabaskan 282 from MS David
Brown. Greg sent David a thank you letter for the tour and sent him
the above photo with the letter.
Click
here to read the letter Greg Mackenzie sent to MS David Brown
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Six survivors of HMCS Athabaskan G07 on HMCS
Athabaskan 282 - circa 2002
(1) Wilf Henrickson (2) Ernie Takalo
(4) Herm Sulkers
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