Canadian Forces Station Barrington, also referred to as CFS Barrington, was a
Canadian Forces Station
A Canadian Forces base or CFB (french: links=no, base des Forces canadiennes, BFC) is a military installation of the Canadian Armed Forces. For a facility to qualify as a Canadian Forces base, it must station one or more major units (e.g., army r ...
located in the unincorporated community of
Baccaro,
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
at Baccaro Point near the southwesternmost point of the province.
History
In 1943 the
Royal Canadian Navy
The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack submar ...
(RCN) established a
LORAN
LORAN, short for long range navigation, was a hyperbolic radio navigation system developed in the United States during World War II. It was similar to the UK's Gee system but operated at lower frequencies in order to provide an improved range u ...
site at Baccaro Point to assist in navigation for Allied naval operations on the North Atlantic.
In a CBC interview in June 2019, 93-year-old Mary Owen, who served in the
Women's Royal Canadian Naval Service
The Women's Royal Canadian Naval Service (WRCNS or "Wrens") was an element of the Royal Canadian Navy that was active during the Second World War and post-war as part of the Royal Canadian Naval Reserve until unification in 1968.http://esask.ureg ...
, or "WRENS", recounted serving at Baccaro in 1944–45. She said 24 WRENS were assigned to the station when she was there. The station's personnel were given
Bren guns,
Sten guns, rifles, and explosives. The guns were to defend against any German landing parties, and the explosives were to destroy the secret LORAN equipment so that it would not fall into enemy hands. In late fall, two German submarines were reported to be a kilometre from the station, raising an apprehension that a landing was imminent. However, the submarines moved on. If they had not, Owen said, the WRENS' instructions were to
"Shoot, set the dynamite and then run like hell ... We were going to blow the whole thing up."[Michelle Gagnon, 'We were sworn to secrecy': Canadian women share stories of their efforts to help win WWII", CBC News June 4, 2019 https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/d-day-code-breakers-women-1.5159789]
After the war, the LORAN site was operated by the
Department of Transport
The Department for Transport (DfT) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that have not been devolved. The d ...
.
In the early years of the
Cold War, the RCN sought to establish a
radar
Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...
site on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia; a number of sites were considered, including remote
Sable Island
Sable Island (french: île de Sable, literally "island of sand") is a small Canadian island situated southeast of Halifax, Nova Scotia, and about southeast of the closest point of mainland Nova Scotia in the North Atlantic Ocean. The island ...
which was ultimately rejected by 1953 due to logistical problems. The Baccaro Point site was selected as it was near the southwesternmost point of Nova Scotia at
Cape Sable Island
Cape Sable Island, locally referred to as Cape Island, is a small Canadian island at the southernmost point of the Nova Scotia peninsula. It is sometimes confused with Sable Island. Historically, the Argyle, Nova Scotia region was known as Cape S ...
and would provide maximum coverage area.
By that time, the
Pinetree Line
The Pinetree Line was a series of radar stations located across the northern United States and southern Canada at about the 50th parallel north, along with a number of other stations located on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. Run by North Ame ...
early warning radar network was being proposed by the
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...
(USAF) and
Royal Canadian Air Force
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...
(RCAF). Construction of a Pinetree Line of Ground-Control Intercept (GCI) radar site began at Baccaro Point in 1955 and was completed in 1957. The facility was operated by the USAF as Barrington Air Station by the
672d Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron
The 672d Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the Boston Air Defense Sector, Air Defense Command, stationed at Barrington Air Force Station, Nova Scotia. It was inactivated on ...
. Radars at the station were:
* Search Radars:
AN/FPS-3
The AN/FPS-20 was a widely used L band early warning and ground-controlled interception radar system employed by the United States Air Force Air Defense Command, the NORAD Pinetree Line in Canada, the USAF CONAD in the continental United States ...
,
AN/FPS-27
The AN/FPS-27 Radar was a Long Range search radar used by the United States Air Force Air Defense Command.
Westinghouse built a Frequency Diverse (FD) search radar designed to operate in the S-band from 2322 to 2670 MHz. The radar was design ...
, AN/FPS-508
* Height Radars:
AN/FPS-26,
AN/FPS-6
The AN/FPS-6 Radar was a long-range height finding radar used by the United States Air Force's Air Defense Command. The AN/FPS-6 radar was introduced into service in the late 1950s and served as the principal height-finder radar for the United Stat ...
B, AN/FPS-6X
As a GCI base, the 672d's role was to guide interceptor aircraft toward unidentified intruders picked up on the unit's radar scopes. These interceptors were based at the
26th NORAD Region bases at
Loring AFB
Loring Air Force Base was a United States Air Force installation in northeastern Maine, near Limestone, Maine, Limestone and Caribou, Maine, Caribou in Aroostook County, Maine, Aroostook County. It was one of the largest bases of the U.S. Air Fo ...
and
Dow AFB
Bangor Air National Guard Base is a United States Air National Guard base. Created in 1927 as the commercial Godfrey Field, the airfield was taken over by the U.S. Army just before World War II and renamed Godfrey Army Airfield and later Dow Arm ...
, Maine.
In the early 1960s, the USAF relinquished control of the base to the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). This was part of an arrangement with the United States that came as a result of the cancellation of the
Avro Arrow
The Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow was a delta-winged interceptor aircraft designed and built by Avro Canada. The CF-105 held the promise of Mach 2 speeds at altitudes exceeding and was intended to serve as the Royal Canadian Air Force's (RCAF) p ...
. Canada would lease 66
F-101 Voodoo
The McDonnell F-101 Voodoo is a supersonic jet fighter which served the United States Air Force (USAF) and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF).
Initially designed by McDonnell Aircraft Corporation as a long-range bomber escort (known as a ...
fighters and take over operation of 12 Pinetree radar bases.
Upon hand-over on 1 June 1962, the operating unit was re-designated 23 Aircraft Control & Warning Squadron and the base became RCAF Station Barrington. Radar operations at 23 Squadron were automated on 1 July 1964 by the
Semi Automatic Ground Environment
The Semi-Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) was a system of large computers and associated networking equipment that coordinated data from many radar sites and processed it to produce a single unified image of the airspace over a wide area. SA ...
(SAGE) system, and the station became a long-range radar site. It would no longer guide interceptors but only look for enemy aircraft, feeding data to the
Boston Air Defense Sector SAGE DC-02 Direction Center of the
26th NORAD Region.
The facility was renamed CFS Barrington with the unification of the
Canadian Forces
}
The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Forc ...
on February 1, 1968, and the newly established 213 Radar Squadron reported to the
21st NORAD Region SAGE DC-03 Direction Center at
Syracuse AFS.
In 1971 the
Canadian Forces
}
The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Forc ...
constructed a
mobile home subdivision on
Sherose Island 27 km west of the station for housing personnel and their families. Beginning in 1983, CFS Barrington began reporting to Canada East ROCC at
CFB North Bay
Canadian Forces Base North Bay, also CFB North Bay, is an air force base located at the City of North Bay, Ontario about north of Toronto. The base is subordinate to 1 Canadian Air Division, Winnipeg, Manitoba, and is the centre for North Ame ...
.
The long range early warning radar became obsolete by the late 1980s and the facility was decommissioned on August 1, 1990. The Baccaro Point site currently hosts a remotely operated Canadian Coastal Radar transmitter/receiver facility.
See also
*
List of Royal Canadian Air Force stations
This is a list of stations operated by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), or stations where RCAF units existed, from 1924 until unification into the Canadian Forces on February 1, 1968.
Some of the RCAF stations listed in this article link to f ...
*
References
* A Handbook of Aerospace Defense Organization 1946 - 1980, by Lloyd H. Cornett and Mildred W. Johnson, Office of History, Aerospace Defense Center, Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado
* Winkler, David F. (1997), Searching the skies: the legacy of the United States Cold War defense radar program. Prepared for United States Air Force Headquarters Air Combat Command.
Information for Barrington AS, NS
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barrington
Canadian Forces bases in Nova Scotia
Canadian Forces bases in Canada (closed)
Royal Canadian Air Force stations
Buildings and structures in Shelburne County, Nova Scotia
1957 establishments in Nova Scotia
1990 disestablishments in Nova Scotia
Military installations established in 1957
Military installations closed in 1990