HMCS Harry DeWolf

On September 18, 2014, the Government of Canada announced the name of the first of the Royal Canadian Navy’s (RCN) Arctic and Offshore Patrol Vessels (AOPVs) in Hamilton, Ont.

Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Harry DeWolf is named in honour of a Second World War Canadian naval hero. HMCS Harry DeWolf is the first of the AOPVs, which are designed to better enable the RCN to exercise sovereignty in Canadian waters, including in the Arctic.

The AOPVs are known as the Harry DeWolf-class, with HMCS Harry DeWolf as the lead ship. Subsequent ships in the class are also named to honour other prominent Canadian naval heroes who served their country with the highest distinction. This is the first time in its over-100-year history that the RCN is naming a class of ship after a prominent Canadian naval figure.

A native of Bedford, N.S., Vice-Admiral Harry DeWolf (RCN) was decorated for outstanding service throughout his naval career, which included wartime command of HMCS St. Laurent from 1939-40, and later, his 1943-44 command of HMCS Haida, known as the “Fightingest Ship in the RCN.” The announcement was made at HMCS Haida, which now serves as a museum ship on the Hamilton waterfront and which is also the RCN’s flagship.

Canada defends more coastline than any other country, as it is bounded by three oceans. The AOPVs will conduct sovereignty and surveillance operations in Canadian waters on all three coasts, including in the Arctic. The AOPVs will also be used to support other units of the Canadian Armed Forces in the conduct of maritime-related operations and to support other government departments in carrying out their mandates, as required.

HMCS Harry DeWolf was delivered to the Government of Canada on July 31, 2020, in Halifax. The ship is expected to be commissioned into the RCN in summer 2021.