Admiral’s Cup awarded to FDU(A) after year of highlights
By Trident Staff
Photo: LT(N) ALEX ROY
Fleet Diving Unit (Atlantic) (FDU(A)) has been named the winner of the 2025 Admiral’s Cup, recognizing a year marked by exceptional feats at home and abroad from the Royal Canadian Navy’s East Coast dive unit. Rear-Admiral Josée Kurtz, Commander Maritime Forces Atlantic and Joint Task Force Atlantic, and Formation Chief Petty Officer 1st Class Derek Godin visited the unit on December 8 to announce the winner and present the Cup in person.
The award is presented annually to the Maritime Forces Atlantic unit with more than 100 personnel that demonstrates outstanding efficiency, morale, and leadership. FDU(A) earned the honour following a busy operational year that saw its members heavily engaged in mine countermeasures, explosive ordnance disposal (EOD), and community support initiatives.
Domestically, the unit’s EOD Team responded to 36 unexploded ordnance taskings across the region. Internationally, Clearance Divers and Seabed Intervention Systems operators deployed from March to November to support Operation REASSURANCE. Their work included mine countermeasures during Operation OPEN SPIRIT in the Baltic Sea and participation in Operation MCM Black Sea alongside Romanian Naval Forces and other NATO partners.
FDU(A) members were also active in the community throughout the year. The unit’s annual fundraising efforts for the Christmas Daddies Telethon reached a new milestone, raising $33,000 for children and families in need. Members also played a major role in the PO2 Craig Blake Memorial Fitness Challenge — an event honouring one of their own — while supporting public outreach at the Bluenose Bienvenue, the annual DND Family Days celebration, and other community events.
Additional highlights included participation in multinational MCM exercises in Romania, bilateral training with U.S. Navy EOD personnel in Halifax, and support for the introduction of new diving equipment across several bases.
