Today, the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) officially welcomed His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Margaret Brooke into naval service October 28 with a commissioning ceremony.

This ceremony marks a significant achievement for both the RCN and the Canadian shipbuilding industry. The introduction of a second Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship (AOPS) delivered under the National Shipbuilding Strategy, which sustains thousands of jobs annually in Canada, will enhance the RCN’s ability to enforce sovereignty and meet the future defense challenges in Canada’s offshore and Arctic waters.

A ship’s commissioning ceremony is both a long-standing naval tradition, and, a special event for the ship’s company – proud sailors who – have just returned from the ship’s first deployment where they assisted communities in Atlantic Canada affected by Hurricane Fiona.

The commissioning of HMCS Margaret Brooke included a symbolic presentation of the commissioning pennant, as well as the symbolic presentation of the “keys to the ship” to the Commanding Officer, Commander Nicole Robichaud.

RCN photo