The Royal Canadian Navy during the Cold War

The end of the Second World War saw the beginning of the Cold War — the struggle for dominance between Soviet-dominated communist countries and democratic countries (including the United States and Canada) in the post-war years. This tense showdown dominated world affairs for decades until the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s. Canada joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949 to form part of a western military alliance to help counter the Soviet threat. The Naval Force the RCN has been a significant part of is the Standing Naval Force Atlantic (STANAVFORLANT). For many decades Canadian ships have trained and served on missions with NATO forces on a regular basis.

Left: RCN Banshees over the HMCS Bonaventure, Centre Tracker Anti Submarine Aircraft.

Right: Sea King Anti-Submarine Helicopter Landing on Destroyer

In addition to upholding our international treaty responsibilities during the Cold War, the Royal Canadian Navy patrolled our own shores on the lookout for the Soviet submarines and long-range aircraft that were probing our defences. The stakes were high — when the Cuban missile crisis erupted in 1962 (after the United States discovered that the Soviet Union had stationed nuclear weapons just off the American coast in Cuba), RCN ships put to sea when the world seemed on the brink of nuclear war.