CPL ANNABELLE MARCOUX
Warm welcome for HMCS Charlottetown after Operations HORIZON, NEON
By Nathan Stone,
Trident Staff
CPL ANNABELLE MARCOUX
His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Charlottetown returned home to Halifax on August 17, marking the end of a six-month-plus deployment to the Indo-Pacific in support of Operations HORIZON and NEON.
The ship departed from His Majesty’s Canadian Dockyard on February 1. During the deployment, HMCS Charlottetown sailed more than 45,000 nautical miles and visited 13 ports across 10 countries.
It kept a busy schedule throughout, working alongside vessels from 15 allied and partner nations through a number of multinational exercises, including KAKADU, BALIKATAN and VALIANT SHIELD.
Speaking to reporters after coming alongside, Commander (Cdr) Jonathan Maurice, HMCS Charlottetown‘s Commanding Officer, reflected on a successful mission.
“From my perspective, maybe a little bit of a biased one, I think it went great. We represented Canada abroad in the Indo-Pacific, met all our objectives, met the mission, and we all came back safely here today.”
He said that sailing in the Indo-Pacific was a unique experience. The ports of the region were highlights for his team of East coast sailors, who don’t often find themselves in Australia or New Zealand.
“It was my first time sailing in the region. We saw new ports, new cultures to adapt to, which is fantastic. Operating with our allies and partners out there, who I wasn’t used to operating with, was a unique challenge and something that I’ll never forget.”
Chief Petty Officer 1st Class (CPO1) Brett Marchand, the ship’s Coxswain, praised the crew’s morale and focus through a long and demanding program at sea.
“It comes with its challenges, but we were able to keep the crew engaged, doing different things, and having fun when we could. But we kept our eyes on the prize, which was executing the mission.”
He said that the extended time away from home had been the toughest test for the crew.
“Missing families, birthdays, anniversaries and everything in between,” he said. “But today is very worth it, being able to reunite an entire ship’s company.”
The ship was met by a large crowd of cheering family and friends as it came alongside.
“I knew it would be a very, very warm welcome,” said CPO1 Marchand.
Karen and John Gilley, both former sailors themselves, were waiting for their daughter, Lieutenant (N) Lacey Gilley, a Combat Information Systems Officer aboard Charlottetown.
“It’s very emotional for them to come into home port,” said Karen Gilley. “It really is a big thing. We’re very proud.”
CPO1 Marchand said he felt that the deployment had been extremely valuable to the crew, who came home with new skills and experience to take with them on future missions.
“We trained a lot of sailors. We came back healthy, safe, all together, and a very close-knit team. Very happy with how it all turned out.”
