The Glen-class tug is a class of naval
tugboat
A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, su ...
operated by the
Royal Canadian Navy
The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the Navy, 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 s ...
. Constructed in Canada, the class entered service between 1975 and 1977. The five vessels that comprise the class are split between the two major naval bases of the Royal Canadian Navy. The Royal Canadian Navy operated a fleet of tugboats during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
which were also named the . The vessels of the current Glen class are each named after one of the vessels of the earlier class.
Description
The Glen class is a series of five
yard tractor tugboats designed for coastal/harbour use in Canada's major naval bases. The vessels have a
standard displacement of . As built they are long with a
beam
Beam may refer to:
Streams of particles or energy
*Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy
**Laser beam
*Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles
**Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...
of and a
draught of . They are propelled by two
Voith Schneider cycloidal propellers turned by two
Ruston-Paxman diesel engine
The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...
s rated at . This gives them a maximum speed of . They initially had a complement of six officers and
ratings.
Ships
The five vessels are divided between the two fleets of the
Royal Canadian Navy
The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the Navy, 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 s ...
, with three assigned to
Maritime Forces Atlantic
In the Canadian Forces, Maritime Forces Atlantic (MARLANT) is responsible for the fleet training and operational readiness of the Royal Canadian Navy in the Atlantic Ocean and Arctic Ocean. It was once referred to as Canadian Atlantic Station.
...
, based at
CFB Halifax and two assigned to
Maritime Forces Pacific, homeported at
CFB Esquimalt.
[
]
While the Glen-class tugs are equipped for firefighting, the Canadian Forces maintained a pair of dedicated s, the 140-ton and , one each in each port.
[
] The crews of the fireboats are cross-trained and able to crew a Glen-class vessel in emergencies. However, ''Firebird'' on the east coast was taken out of service and prepared for disposal.
Replacements
On 4 December 2012 the Department of National Defence published an enquiry for Canadian shipbuilders interested in building replacements for the Glen-class tugs¸and Fire-class fireboats.
[
][
] A single class would replace both the tugs and the fireboats, and would be operated by civilian crews. The replacement vessels would have water cannons that could be controlled remotely, by a single individual. The replacement vessels would have
bollard pull of 40 tons. The replacement vessels would be limited to or less, and limited to a
draught of or less. Since their intended role would be harbour duties, they would have limited range and crew berthing capacity.
On 29 April 2019 the Government of Canada announced
Ocean Industries of
Isle-aux-Coudres
L'Isle-aux-Coudres is a municipality in Quebec, Canada, in the Charlevoix Regional County Municipality in the Charlevoix area of the Capitale-Nationale region. It is located on and contiguous with Coudres Island (''Île aux Coudres''), located i ...
,
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
was awarded the contract to build four tow-tug / rescue vessels to replace both the Fire-class fireboat/tractor tugs and Glen-class yard tugs with delivery expected from 2021 to 2023.
See also
*
*
References
References
*
External links
* {{Commonscat-inline, Glen class tugs
Auxiliary tugboat classes
Tugboats of the Royal Canadian Navy