HMCS Toronto (FFH 333) - Service

Service

Toronto serves on MARLANT missions protecting Canada's sovereignty in the Atlantic Ocean and enforcing Canadian laws in its territorial sea and Exclusive Economic Zone.

Service highlights

• 50th Anniversary of D-Day Celebrations - May and June 1994. The ship visited several ports in the United Kingdom including the embarkation areas for Canadian troops taking part in the 6 June 1944 landings. Other highlights included attending the unveiling of a war memorial in Hyde Park and taking part in the sailpast of the landing beaches at dawn on 6 June.
• Operation Sharp Guard, 1994 - NATO patrols off the coast of the former Yugoslavia to restrict the importation of arms and fuel in an effort to end the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
• Operation Victory in Europe, 1995 - Joined international flotilla of warships to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Victory in Europe. Highlights included a port visit to Amsterdam to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Liberation of the Netherlands. This included visits by the ship's company to ceremonies at several Canadian War Cemeteries in the Netherlands.
• Standing Naval Force Atlantic, 1997 - Toronto deployed for North Atlantic operations with STANAVFORLANT and was involved in a major search and rescue operation off the coast of Spain.
• Operation Determination, 1998 - UN patrols in the northern Persian Gulf to effect an embargo against Iraq. Toronto's rapid redeployment to the Persian Gulf necessitated intense training to prepare the ship for tropical operations under the chemical and biological warfare threats of Iraq.
• Flagship for the Canadian Task Group Atlantic, November 1998 - January 2000 - Toronto is involved in an intensive year of operations, sailing in every CTGA exercise.
• Exercise El Morro Castle, 1999 - Successful missile engagements against target drones and missiles confirms the effectiveness of the ship's advanced missile defence system and the crew's training.
• Search and rescue of the M/V Leader L, 2000 - Toronto in company with a squadron of Canadian warships to scene of sinking and is involved in rescue of 13 crew members. 18 men perished in the accident.
• Search and rescue of fishing boat, 2001 - Toronto responds to distress call of sinking fishing boat while conducting work-ups off Nova Scotia coast and is involved in rescue of 3 crewmembers. 1 man perished in the sinking.
• Operation Active Endeavour, 2001 - 2002 - Toronto deployed for eastern Mediterranean Sea patrols with NATO's Standing Naval Force Atlantic on anti-terrorism operations. Toronto's rapid deployment necessitated intense training to prepare for possible nuclear, biological, and chemical threats.
• Operation Apollo, 2002 - Toronto re-deploys to the northern Arabian Sea to conduct operations in the support of anti-terrorism operations.
• Operation Altair, 2004 - Toronto re-deploys to the northern Arabian Sea to conduct operations in the support of anti-terrorism operations.
• Operation Unison, September 2005 - Part of MARCOM contingent dispatched to assist in Hurricane Katrina (see: Canadian response to Hurricane Katrina).
• 1 October 2007 - Toronto, while serving in NATO's Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 (SNMG1), was involved in a search and rescue operation of 9 missing Yemeni soldiers after a volcanic eruption on Jabal al-Tair island, about 140 kilometres off the coast of Yemen in the Red Sea. Toronto rescued one man and located the bodies of two more.
• 24 November 2008 Toronto makes port of call in Norfolk, Virginia with HMCS Athabaskan and HMCS Preserver
• In February 2011, Toronto completed a month-long deployment to the Caribbean Sea conducting counter-drug operations in cooperation with the United states. Working with an embarked U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET), Toronto provided surveillance, logistics, and refueling support for law enforcement missions. This was the first time that a U.S. Coast Guard LEDET operated from a Canadian vessel.