Royal Canadian Navy to retire eight warships before end of the year

Ice floats past HMCS Kingston west of Pond Inlet, Nvt., on Eclipse Sound, on Sunday, Aug. 24, 2014. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

HALIFAX — The Royal Canadian Navy plans to retire some of its older warships this fall.

The navy confirmed Thursday that eight of its 12 Kingston-class vessels will be removed from service following “paying off” ceremonies in Halifax and Esquimalt, B.C.

Officially known as Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels, these small ships were built and launched in the 1990s. Each is 55 metres long, weighs about 970 tonnes and has a crew of about 40.

“There is no loss of capability for the (navy) as a result of the divestment of the Kingston-class,” the Department of National Defence said in a statement. “Their missions and tasks will be redistributed to other existing ships and assets, and taken on by new systems being introduced.”

The ships, powered by diesel-electric motors, are primarily used for coastal patrols, search and rescue, law enforcement, mine detection, and training. They have been deployed to operations in the eastern Pacific, Caribbean, off West Africa and in European waters, as well as many missions across Canada’s three oceans.

Meanwhile, the Defence Department says the Kingston-class key mine-sweeping and counter-measures functions will be handled by the navy’s fleet diving units and remote and autonomous systems operated from other navy vessels.

As well, the navy’s relatively new Arctic and offshore patrol vessels will take on Kingston-class roles, such as counter-narcotics operations. And the training role will be shifted to the navy’s smaller Orca-class vessels.

The navy is also moving ahead with replacing its retired Iroquois-class destroyers and its existing Halifax-class patrol frigates with 15 River-class destroyers.

The new warships will be built by Halifax-based Irving Shipbuilding Inc. The federal government said in March the first three ships will cost a total of $22.2 billion. The project has been described as the largest and most complex shipbuilding initiative in Canada since the Second World War.

As for the “paying off” ceremony for the Kingston-class ships, that tradition comes from the British practice of paying a crew their wages once a ship has completed its voyage. In the Canadian navy, paying off refers to the formal ceremony where the ship’s flags and commissioning pennant are removed and the crew departs the ship for the last time.

Ceremonies will be held in Halifax this fall for HMCS Shawinigan, HMCS Summerside, HMCS Goose Bay, HMCS Glace Bay and HMCS Kingston. Ceremonies will also be held in Esquimalt for HMCS Saskatoon, HMCS Whitehorse and HMCS Brandon.

The navy’s four remaining operational Kingston-class vessels -- HMCS Moncton, HMCS Yellowknife, HMCS Edmonton and HMCS Nanaimo -- will operate out of Halifax. They will be retired over the next three years.

“Kingston-class vessels have provided the Royal Canadian Navy with a significant capability throughout their many years of service,” Vice-Admiral Angus Topshee, commander Royal Canadian Navy, said in a statement.

“As we move towards the future of the Royal Canadian Navy, I want to recognize the service of these ships and extend my tremendous gratitude to all who have sailed within them.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 24, 2025.

By Michael MacDonald