My dad was in the room when I think it was Paul Hellyer or James Richardson, Liberal defence minister, walked in with the Admiralty and told them they could either get rid of six destroyers or the Bonny and another planned carrier. The Admiralty, who were essentially small-boat guys from the convoy navy chose to scrap the aircraft carriers. After that Canada was no longer in the big-leagues with other navies. Bonaventure was a fine ship with years of service ahead of her and excellent ability to cover a large patrol area with her planes. But this is Canada, and we never spend on defence, preferring to leave that up to the Americans. I don't know why the Americans put up with it.
I served on the 'Bonnie' in 1966-67. During my time on the ship we had no Banshees, just Trackers and our main function was anti-submarine warfare. We once tied up along side a British Aircraft carrier and the difference in size was really noticeable. We had to climb a ladder from our flight deck to their's and it was a bit of a fitness test to go ashore. Never-the-less that nearly two years has been a good memory and I often remember back to those times fondly.
my father served on a few times he was on it in 66 and 67 its nice to hear what they were doing my dad never talked about it but he just loved the Navy.
My dad was a junior officer on a destroyer in the Med in 1963 when he did something career-ending. He was transferred by jackstay to Bonnie for the duration of the tour. At least, that's the story he told. I was a baby at the time.
My father served on the Bonnie from 1957 to 1964. We lived at 3 Swordfish drive. We moved back to Ontario in December 1964. Four middle kids out of 6 where born down east. Bonnie Babies!
That HMCS Bonaventure was decommissioned shortly after a multi-million dollar refit might tell you all you need to know about Canada’s defence procurement both then and now.
As a resident of Dartmouth and a student at St Mary's university in Halifax, I passed over this ship daily on my commute. In or around '69 she was sent to Quebec for an extensive refit. Trudeau Sr was prime minister. The ship had barely docked back in Halifax when it was announced she was to be decommissioned. What a waste! But Quebec ship
@@alpearson9158 justify that comment- the refit was part of a normal mid-life refit. The order to decommission was made by the Liberal government. The PM ( our first Trudeau in that role) froze the total annual defence budget at $2.7 billion a year for five years, despite the then annual inflation rate of 12%. Don’t blame the Navy for them being starved into irrelevance.
I worked the flight deck on the Bonnie from 61 to 63 and during the Cuban crisis. We were in England when it started and sailed to Halifax at top speed and rearmed for war. Most of the time we had no up to date news so we didn't think it was as bad as it was so we weren't worried. Being a teenage I was invincible of course. The jets when landing on were very fast and landed hard. When your standing on deck 40 feet from the landing point I will admit that on a couple of occasions during some landings I started to run to safety, not that it would have done me a lot of good. As a formal naval airman I am proud and honored to have been able to serve.
I served on HMCS Athabaskan in the seventies and I remember some of my crew mates telling me exciting stories about when they served on HMCS Bonaventure. Sure made me wish I had the opportunity to experience it myself! A very interesting video on a small part of our great naval history.
The Canadian Government delayed a decision on a weapons purchase ? What are the odds. I remember seeing the Bonnie in the Harbour many times. Thanks for bringing this aspect of her service and The Banshee.
@@Joshua_N-A Personally, yes. Especially given Canada's role in keeping the North Atlantic patrolled. But as with so much to with the Military in Canada, governments come and they go. They scrapped the Bonnie for less than they spent in upgrades maybe 2 years earlier. Our Military is top notch, they are just at the mercy of the Government du jour.
@@robjohnson5872 Brazil keep the Minais Gerais up until early 2000's. Canada could've keep theirs past 1990 with those refits. Given the length and power of the catapult, Canada would've limited to A-4 Skyhawk and later Super Étendard for the Banshee replacment.
My father was chief engineer on the MV William Carson...a ferry that ran between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland...they had left North Sydney enroute to Newfoundland when they lost power about 80 miles out...they were in near hurricane winds and at the mercy of the wind...they issued a pan pan and low and behold the closest vessel was the Bonnie! She came as close as she safely could to partially block the wind and break the sea...without the Bonnie the Carson would have found its fate years earlier.
I've been a naval buff since the 1960's. (My dad was a WW II U.S. Navy combat vet.) Although I became aware of Bonaventure, et al, a long time ago, this is the first film and documentary I've ever seen about the ship and its Banshee ops. Thanks and well done
Very good and enjoyable well narrated piece of Military History captured for all to see and presented in a easy to follow well scripted short film. Well done and thank you.
@@brentrigby764 Yeah, because it is not like we are one of the founding members of NATO, and we certainly have not participated in nearly every major war involving our allies in the past 200 years. *shush*
At 471mph, the Banshee was surprisingly slow. Not much faster than the latest prop fighters. Excellent video. Thank you for also listing imperial measurement units in the description. Much appreciated.
That is because those specs are for the FH-1 Phantom, not the F2H Banshee. The top speed of the Banshee was 580mph, and its cruising speed was 461mph.. Both you and the creator should of checked the data...
So the phenomenon of Canada buying other nation's old or obsolete military equipment (then spending more money in the long run plus years of delays to repair and retrofit and end up with an inferior, obsolete and, compromised product) has long history.
@@alpearson9158 Not really. Construction started during WW2 then halted when the war ended, then finally completed in 1957. British leftovers, just like the Victoria class subs.
@@snicketysnickerdoodle8484only her kill was laid down in 1945 and then mothballed. 99.99 % completed between 1952 and 1957. So she was brand new and built to 1950s standards(steam catapults for jet aircraft. Do you need to watch the video again?
Canada seemed like a more ambitious country back then. Cant imagine Canada maintaining a potent navy today. Australia shows what Canada could do with its navy if it had vision
Australia has always had a greater need for a stronger navy then Canada, going back the creation of the RCN and RAN. Which is why they traditional have a stronger standing Navy then Canada does. That said I would be happy to see the RCN enlarged.
If it where up to me Canada's navy would focus on sub-hunting. I'd also give the navy its own helicopters back and stop the silliness of having the airforce operate on ships.
@@Peorhum wouldn't we all like to see our navies enlarged. The RN is in the same situation despite the new aircraft carriers. Now it seems we are not going to received enough aircraft to fully equip one carrier let alone two. It's a shame, but modus operandi for the Conservative government.
This is amazing. I've been looking for a vid about this, I grew up with all the stories. My dad served on the Bonnie and he was a part of the 880 squad as a radio navigator in the Grumman tracker, doing anti sub warfare. he talked about the short time they had fighters with them because I always questioned why they didn't have fighter support . thank you for making this video man. much love.
Another excellent video on a little known aspect of naval aviation. Lots of footage and information which you’d struggle to find elsewhere. I particularly like the way the author blends in the political background to procurement decisions. It would be great to see a longer set of videos covering the evolution of the Canadian aircraft industry during the 1939-45 war taking in the expansion of the RCAF and the vital Commonwealth Air Training Plan and Atlantic Ferry organisations. Thank you again!
I was an Avtech/crewman VS880 Shearwater on Trackers when they decommissioned her. Would have been my next posting but I did get to march in the decomm. ceremony. I can still feel my feet on her flight deck.
Hey im really liking these videos almost no one talks about the Canadian military and its equipment, u should do some naval ships and ground equipment as well
I never knew that Canada had Banshees or had them updated for the Sidewinder missile, or an aircraft carrier. That's an expense they figure they can do without.
An uncle serverd aboard the Maggie in the 1950s. Wonderful to hear her mentioned. I remember well seeing the Bonnie in Halifax Harbour and earlier steaming past Sambro Island. Indeed, navy pilots used The Sambro light tower as a marker for flights. As a boy it was so cool when planes from Shearwater would waggle their wings or sometimes make diving runs on me as I waved at or ran after them my arms outstretched like wings. They'd always salute as they flew low past the island. That always made a small boy's day!
my father served on the Maggie and the Bonnie and so many others when my twin brothers were born he wanted to call one Cape and one Scott after the Cape Scott. The Navy was amazing in those days
Another great video!! I enjoy the history you bring to life. Especially when you point out the unknown tactical advantage the Canadian designed and built Clunks had over ALL their competition.
Imagine them adding the Argus at like 5.7 with the AGM-12Bs they tested on it lol As for the CF-100s, those would be great, especially the 100 mk4 since it gets both guns and rockets, while having pretty good engines
father server on her sometime between 1961 though 1968 with other ships he serve on til we got our Obean class uk subs where he serve til 1971/72 I remember going in one of the subs as honorable discharge/retire from navy. I always wanted a model of of her my eyes/hand deal make that a not go.
My old man was a pilot on the Bonnie from '57 to '59, then did the mail run from '64 to the end in '70. Took lots of 8mm film in '58 and 59. I'm a Shearwater brat myself.
i just wanted to comment and tell you how much i enjoy this series and how its nice to see Canadian aviation history content, i think the navy museum in Calgary has examples of all the navy aircraft used by canada
Very interesting indeed! Thank you for this great video! It makes one wonder whether or not the decision to get rid of our Fleet Air Arm was a good one... Looking at the world's carrier operators Canada seems to be one of the only country to have previously operated aircraft carriers and got rid of them. There was previously Australia and Brazil but now both countries have new helicopter carriers in service. That leaves Canada and Argentina, which I think speaks for itself.
@@erikgustafson9319 Yes. Of course I'm not in the backstages of the Navy but, from what I know this could be the single best argument for carrier procurement in Canada. Given the lack of infrastructures and the fact that there's not going to be more build any time soon, helicopter carriers would be force multipliers for Arctic ops.
As an aging American boomer, I admire Canada's cost-effective use of Banshees, Voodoos, Starfighters, and Freedom Fighters. Those respectable aircraft were quickly bypassed here in the States by the Defense Department's "money-to-burn" mindset. In 2021, the still-undeployable Ford-class carriers, and the barely-flyable-at-supersonic-speeds F-35, are the latest examples of that mindset. On a more hopeful note: I'd really enjoy a documentary about the cancelled Canada-class SSN's: the "boats" that Russian (and American) submariners didn't want to see built...
@@intercommerce They were a proposed class of nuclear subs built from licensed designs from either Britain or France here in Canada but with reactors imported from either country. They faced significant opposition here due to projected cost, potential changes to the balance of power with the Warsaw Pact and from abroad, mostly the US, who essentially didn't want us to be able to exercise and enforce our sovereignty, particularly in the Arctic. They did so by using a pair of treaties, one that allowed them to block the sale of nuke reactors from the UK to a third party (Canada) and one that allowed them to block the purchasing of nuclear reactors from a third party (France).
Excellent video! I wish Canada still had aircraft carriers. Very sad. Parliament is mostly "missing in action" when it comes to the need for a larger military with top of the line equipment and more personnel. Canada's political parties are more interested in getting votes by how much taxpayer dollars they can shower on supporters and special interests instead of investing it in national defence.
We'd need to probably triple our fleet to be able to deploy a carrier, we just don't have the bodies to crew that many ships, forget the extra taxes we'd have to pay in order to not only buy the ships but to keep them active. As much as I would love to see us with a larger navy and a carrier it just isn't feasible and we're better off with "our" navy aka the USN.
@@KMCA779 Oui nous pouvons avoir une grande armée moderne. Nous gaspillons beaucoup d'argent inutilement. Nos sommes mal administrer, des incompétants.
loved to see my father in uniform perfect haircut perfect shiny footwear the different color uniform as he went up in rank. Love the navy uniform when the navy was just the navy and the army was the army the good old days.
I am enjoying your channel, keep it up. To bad our governments screwed the Canadian Aerospace /Aircraft industries. We could of have been a world leader in those industries. Canada has built some amazing Canadian Designed Aircraft. Keep up the great video output.
It would be great to see an interview with some of the crew that sailed during the Cuban missile crisis. What must have gone through their heads waiting for the world to potentially fall into nuclear war?
I am really enjoying your videos on Canadian aircraft history. I have one small ask though. You consistently list Imperial conversions in brackets for any statistics/measurements with the exception of pound of thrust alongside kilonewtons. As a Canadian I'm pretty comfortable understanding both metric and imperial measurements, but I'm lost on kilonewtons.
I don’t know where you got your Banshee specs from, but they’re significantly out. Also, Puncher and Nabob were American escort carriers built in Seattle. They were sent to Great Britain as part of the lend/lease agreement. The RN kept them as HMS ships, crewed by Canadians, but the aircraft were flown by British pilots.
Looking at the GC website, I see what you mean. Unfortunately, its wrong. What they’ve published are the specs for the 1st prototype McDonnell FH Phantom. The original F2H has specs listed on the Boeing website. The models up to F2H-2 were the same. The F2H-3 was ‘approximately’ 8 feet longer (2.4m) to accommodate the radar equipment and larger internal fuel tanks. F2H-4 variants were identical to the -3 externally. You can see the Boeing published specs here www.boeing.com/history/products/f2h-banshee.page
Fantastic! This is a blast from my past. Served in Maggie, 1954 as Electrician's Mate. !957 switched to Naval Air. Spent years at Shearwater maintaining Trackers, Banshees, HO4S and Sea King Helos and other aircraft. Later in Bonnie with HS-50 Sea King squadron. Also involved in Helo Haul Down System Evaluation with VX-10. Spent time at NAMS teaching electrical and instrument systems. Only one complaint- you should never put the word "the" before HMCS! RCN for ever!!
Hi John, I can outdate you! I was an OSEM in Maggie, the days of the black hats. remember that? I don't think we have a Navy today, All recruits are army trained, British army drill and ranks. I think they are more like Marines, sea-borne army. Bravo Zulu to you.
Another cracking video - well done! I saw the 'Bonnie' when she visited Pompey shortly before decommissioning - nice looking ship. p.s. I agree with the other comments - no need for 'the' before 'HMCS', but it's a nitpicking point and doesn't detract from a well researched and produced video.
A rather good video, bravo! Sadly the size, capabilities, and contribution of the Canadian Navy during the post-war (and even sometimes during the WWII) period are overlooked by so many people. The winding down of the Canadian Navy and that of the "mother country" is often lamented but the changing fiscal situations of the Commonwealth nations necessitated it and it can be seen as part of the desired "peace dividends". As long as this marvellous history is remembered we should be happy, not wistful.
@@Joshua_N-A yep, that happened to HMAS Melbourne twice! HMAS Voyager and USS Frank E. Evans, both destroyers. The destroyers were both found to be at fault in the collisions thought Melbourne earned a reputation as a jinxed ship.
@@frostedbutts4340 indeed! Sydney way used as a transport after Melbourne was commissioned because Melbourne had an angled flight deck and Sydney didn’t. Sydney became nicknamed the Vung Tau Ferry during the Vietnam War.
You have a factual error at 0:36. HMS Nabob and HMS Puncher were not British-made, they were American Bogue-class carriers (USS Edisto and USS Willapa) operated under lend-lease. The RCN wanted to operate the carriers but the rules of the lend-lease agreement forbade it. A loophole was found by having the crew be Canadian while under British command.
Dad and his buddy would play cat and mouse games . Dad on the Ojibway and his good buddy taking off from the Bonny in a Tracker. After all was said and done a proper drinking session at RA Park commenced, Mom was not amused.
The wives all had problems. We hairybags had our ideals and women were constantly trying to change us. they should have come to sea in a Restigouche class DDE and accepted us or not married us eh.
HMS Puncher (D79) USS Willapa (AVG-53/ACV-53/CVE-53) was a Bogue-class escort carrier (originally an auxiliary aircraft carrier) built during World War II for the United States Navy. Never seeing American service, the ship was transferred to the United Kingdom as part of Lend-Lease. The escort carrier was renamed HMS Puncher (D79) of the British Ruler class and crewed by the Royal Canadian Navy with aircrew from the Fleet Air Arm. Primarily used as an aircraft transport, Puncher took part in operations along the Norwegian coast towards the end of the war. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Puncher_(D79)
Canada could really do with 3-5 carriers. 1 for each coast, 1 for deployment and 2 for maintenance/rotation giving 3 active and 2 ready state. While something like the US, UK, or French fleet carriers are far to large for canada's need, the Japanese DDH helicopter destroyers (aka aircraft carriers), like the Izumo class, at 1 billion each, and 19500 tons, or the smaller Hyūga-class at 14000 tons, have very small crews, only about 370, which compared to the 1000's for us carriers, in fact leans more again towards a Canadian destroyer crew size. Operating a large group of full sized helicopters, these ships would be useful for marine patrol, enforcement, monitoring, and other duties. They are also designed to be used "if needed" as helicopter landing ships for transport of troops, but can serve as mobile hosptials, rescue centers, and such. The ability to bring to bear up to 18 helicopters into a disaster area along either coast, or even several VC-22 giving the ships the ability to operate aircraft up to 450 miles inland. The amount of use these ships could provide to the navy would be immense.
The Hyugas are ASW carriers, they even got torpedo launch tubes built into the hull. The Izumos are currently Japan's largest vessels & undergoing upgrade to become STOVL carriers. The Izumos were designed for F-35Bs in mind from the start. Izumo's cost for one ship is a bang for buck for its size.
@H Lafrond oh i know. and think of how much of this is actually because of "loss of tax revenue" because of all the Energy West BS.. demands to shut down the oil sands... and the whole keystone blocking. The amount of damage these idiots have done to our economy...
Any truth to the persistent rumour that the updated and refitted Bonnie was swapped out for the worn out INS Vikrant during the two weeks the ship was unaccounted for on its way to the scrapyard in Japan in 1971? Both ships are long gone, but it is a rumour that has always intrigued me.
That's an interesting rumor. The timeframe certainly fits, as Vikrant's boilers were totally shot and the ship pulled out of service in June 1970, only to re-emerge in the spring of 1971. Bonaventure was decommissioned in July 1970, and scrapped in Taiwan in 1971. It was scarcely 3 years out of a refit when decommissioned.
The Vikrant had faulty boilers in 1970 but they were never replaced until 1980 with brand new units, her boilers were reinforced with heavy steel straps between 1970/1980 which allowed the ship to operate at a reduced speed, it is just a myth as both ships had major differences
Even back then Canada bought used. I don't even recognize Canada of the past. A more confident and ambitious country. What happened! Now our navy, air force, and army rots from neglect.
HMCS Nabob was, well kinda sunk on its one and only combat operation. Oh, it limped, towed and managed to get back to Port. Well, safe harbour wasn't far away as it was returning to base. It proved so badly damaged with no useful role if repaired- the Battle of the Atlantic basically being over. Oh, the Captain: well, didn't get to captain anything again due to series of morale and safety matters. This was not to most lustrous career of a Canadian warship. The ship was technically a Royal Navy ship built be the Americans and crewed by not just Canadians but a Commonwealth of squadrons including quite a squadron of Kiwis, a few Aussies and some Poms who were to teach the Canucks the ropes. I have never found how the ship ended with not the most inspiring name: if anyone could help.
I can’t see where an aircraft carrier would be useful in today’s Canadian navy but more patrol vessels and icebreakers would be a good idea. Oh, and maybe 8 modern and actually functional submarines, ideally nuclear for arctic work.
We do a lot of work in the North Atlantic and the pacific and a carrier can be quite useful as an ASW platform launching aircraft to find and track submarines they wouldn’t need to be huge like the US carriers maybe something like a queen Elizabeth class or the Japanese one
Jameson 123 If we are talking about defending our coastal waters then land based aircraft, patrol vessels and sensors would certainly do the job. Aircraft carriers are for operations outside of a country’s waters so why would Canada want to tie up our defence budget on something like that?
@@marcusaetius9309 with tensions in the South Pacific right now having a way to project all the way out there would be useful. It definitely shouldn’t be a top priority functional submarines, patrol vessels that are more heavily armed, and supply ships should be at the top but a carrier would definitely be a nice to have. And maybe if we actually started spending the 2% required for NATO members we could get what we need quicker so that they can get what they want later.
Jameson 123 The tensions in the pacific have zero to do with Canada. If we were not part of NATO we would be able to afford more modern kit for our military and maybe even make the systems ourselves.
@@marcusaetius9309 it does matter what’s happening in the pacific because we have a pacific coast Canada has a two ocean navy there’s also the fact that a lot of trade is with China and that we have allies namely Australia and New Zealand we may have to support during a conflict.
Maybe it's time to bring back Project Habbskuk? . The ice Aircraft carrier. Hey, worst case scenario it'd make a great spot for a covid free destination for the Winter Classic hockey game:) .
Canada had such a formidable military force, comparable to the superpowers of the day, post WW2, the massive drawdown is staggering. I know canada wa full capable of industry, economy strains had to of been big, but it's sad to think, like the UK, a great power reduced to getting scraps of other nations. But Canada is no less capable or badass today 🇨🇦
my father tried to join at 16 and could not but at 17 he was in He loved the navy I have to say living in Halifax of Dartmouth was exciting with the Navy all around loved when the Navy had their own uniforms.
Having served in the Forces, it always makes me wonder what the Government is doing. All because the Government is not willing to spend money on the Forces. Not ignoring the fact that we can't even defend our sovereign territory. And we have some of the best troops in the world. Look at our history, damn shame 😒
My dad was in the room when I think it was Paul Hellyer or James Richardson, Liberal defence minister, walked in with the Admiralty and told them they could either get rid of six destroyers or the Bonny and another planned carrier. The Admiralty, who were essentially small-boat guys from the convoy navy chose to scrap the aircraft carriers. After that Canada was no longer in the big-leagues with other navies. Bonaventure was a fine ship with years of service ahead of her and excellent ability to cover a large patrol area with her planes. But this is Canada, and we never spend on defence, preferring to leave that up to the Americans. I don't know why the Americans put up with it.
I served on the 'Bonnie' in 1966-67. During my time on the ship we had no Banshees, just Trackers and our main function was anti-submarine warfare. We once tied up along side a British Aircraft carrier and the difference in size was really noticeable. We had to climb a ladder from our flight deck to their's and it was a bit of a fitness test to go ashore. Never-the-less that nearly two years has been a good memory and I often remember back to those times fondly.
My uncle served on her too. I got to visit her as a kid. Canucks only need a post stamp to land on. Didn't we operate Sea Kings from destroyers? :-)
Do you know the name of the RN carrier?
@@simonyip5978 Look up on Drachs channel.
ua-cam.com/video/jvn98bFwSks/v-deo.html
my father served on a few times he was on it in 66 and 67 its nice to hear what they were doing my dad never talked about it but he just loved the Navy.
My Uncle was second in command on the Bonaventure . Took me aboard a few times when i was about 10 . What a thrill
I consider you a very lucky person as I'm only 22 myself
That must have been fun.
What a beautiful and great memory!!!
So jealous!
My dad was a junior officer on a destroyer in the Med in 1963 when he did something career-ending. He was transferred by jackstay to Bonnie for the duration of the tour. At least, that's the story he told. I was a baby at the time.
My father served on the Bonnie from 1957 to 1964. We lived at 3 Swordfish drive. We moved back to Ontario in December 1964. Four middle kids out of 6 where born down east. Bonnie Babies!
lol My dad joined the Navy at 17 got a priest to give him fake papers and he served on the Bonnie and the Maggie and many others I was born in Halifax
That HMCS Bonaventure was decommissioned shortly after a multi-million dollar refit might tell you all you need to know about Canada’s defence procurement both then and now.
Correct me if I'm wrong. As I recall the Bonnie went to India for scrapping and allegedly end up in the Indian Navy by hook or by crook.
As a resident of Dartmouth and a student at St Mary's university in Halifax, I passed over this ship daily on my commute. In or around '69 she was sent to Quebec for an extensive refit. Trudeau Sr was prime minister. The ship had barely docked back in Halifax when it was announced she was to be decommissioned. What a waste! But Quebec ship
@@ericripley9739 irrelevant why don't clowns understand the navy made that decision not the government
@@alpearson9158 Don't get it ... Who do you think controls the Navy???
@@alpearson9158 justify that comment- the refit was part of a normal mid-life refit. The order to decommission was made by the Liberal government. The PM ( our first Trudeau in that role) froze the total annual defence budget at $2.7 billion a year for five years, despite the then annual inflation rate of 12%. Don’t blame the Navy for them being starved into irrelevance.
I worked the flight deck on the Bonnie from 61 to 63 and during the Cuban crisis. We were in England when it started and sailed to Halifax at top speed and rearmed for war. Most of the time we had no up to date news so we didn't think it was as bad as it was so we weren't worried. Being a teenage I was invincible of course.
The jets when landing on were very fast and landed hard. When your standing on deck 40 feet from the landing point I will admit that on a couple of occasions during some landings I started to run to safety, not that it would have done me a lot of good. As a formal naval airman I am proud and honored to have been able to serve.
I served on HMCS Athabaskan in the seventies and I remember some of my crew mates telling me exciting stories about when they served on HMCS Bonaventure. Sure made me wish I had the opportunity to experience it myself! A very interesting video on a small part of our great naval history.
The Canadian Government delayed a decision on a weapons purchase ? What are the odds. I remember seeing the Bonnie in the Harbour many times. Thanks for bringing this aspect of her service and The Banshee.
Do you think Canada should've keep the carrier?
@@Joshua_N-A Personally, yes. Especially given Canada's role in keeping the North Atlantic patrolled. But as with so much to with the Military in Canada, governments come and they go. They scrapped the Bonnie for less than they spent in upgrades maybe 2 years earlier. Our Military is top notch, they are just at the mercy of the Government du jour.
@@robjohnson5872 Brazil keep the Minais Gerais up until early 2000's. Canada could've keep theirs past 1990 with those refits. Given the length and power of the catapult, Canada would've limited to A-4 Skyhawk and later Super Étendard for the Banshee replacment.
@Ross Outdoors the Indian Navy once converted their CATOBAR to a ski jump carrier.
My father was chief engineer on the MV William Carson...a ferry that ran between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland...they had left North Sydney enroute to Newfoundland when they lost power about 80 miles out...they were in near hurricane winds and at the mercy of the wind...they issued a pan pan and low and behold the closest vessel was the Bonnie! She came as close as she safely could to partially block the wind and break the sea...without the Bonnie the Carson would have found its fate years earlier.
I've been a naval buff since the 1960's. (My dad was a WW II U.S. Navy combat vet.) Although I became aware of Bonaventure, et al, a long time ago, this is the first film and documentary I've ever seen about the ship and its Banshee ops. Thanks and well done
I served on the Bonnie in 65 and 66 ... Worked in the torpedo shop....
Loved my time on that ship.
Very good and enjoyable well narrated piece of Military History captured for all to see and presented in a easy to follow well scripted short film.
Well done and thank you.
My uncle was an officer on the Bonaventure. I got to visit her as a kid.
That was neat. Thank you. I didn't know we had an aircraft carrier.
@@polyus_studios damn right it would have been! And Top Gun was the shit.
@@polyus_studios I hope that Canada gets an aircraft carrier in the future
@@Adriatic1290 Canada doesn’t need an aircraft carrier
@@brentrigby764 Yeah, because it is not like we are one of the founding members of NATO, and we certainly have not participated in nearly every major war involving our allies in the past 200 years.
*shush*
@@CanadianAvian yeah sure, that’s what qualifies us. Go back to bed, young man
At 471mph, the Banshee was surprisingly slow. Not much faster than the latest prop fighters. Excellent video. Thank you for also listing imperial measurement units in the description. Much appreciated.
That is because those specs are for the FH-1 Phantom, not the F2H Banshee. The top speed of the Banshee was 580mph, and its cruising speed was 461mph.. Both you and the creator should of checked the data...
So the phenomenon of Canada buying other nation's old or obsolete military equipment (then spending more money in the long run plus years of delays to repair and retrofit and end up with an inferior, obsolete and, compromised product) has long history.
was brand new
@@alpearson9158 Not really. Construction started during WW2 then halted when the war ended, then finally completed in 1957. British leftovers, just like the Victoria class subs.
Yes it was brand spanking new in 1952 when Canada took delivery of her. Catch up would you please.
@@snicketysnickerdoodle8484only her kill was laid down in 1945 and then mothballed. 99.99 % completed between 1952 and 1957. So she was brand new and built to 1950s standards(steam catapults for jet aircraft. Do you need to watch the video again?
@@allannantes8583 Thanks for confirming what I wrote 2 years ago.
A friend of mine served on the Bonni back in the mid 1960's....very cool
Canada seemed like a more ambitious country back then. Cant imagine Canada maintaining a potent navy today. Australia shows what Canada could do with its navy if it had vision
Australia has always had a greater need for a stronger navy then Canada, going back the creation of the RCN and RAN. Which is why they traditional have a stronger standing Navy then Canada does. That said I would be happy to see the RCN enlarged.
If it where up to me Canada's navy would focus on sub-hunting. I'd also give the navy its own helicopters back and stop the silliness of having the airforce operate on ships.
@@sahibal-shemeri5466 The navy does specialize in escort...including sub hunting. The system we have now works well enough for the size of the navy.
@@Peorhum What do you think the RCN should do? How large and what composition would you favor ?
@@Peorhum wouldn't we all like to see our navies enlarged. The RN is in the same situation despite the new aircraft carriers. Now it seems we are not going to received enough aircraft to fully equip one carrier let alone two. It's a shame, but modus operandi for the Conservative government.
IMO the Banshee was one of the greatest looking aircraft of that era. Thoroughly enjoyed the video.
Dude, I love learning about Aircraft carriers and their planes from other countries. Another one knocked out of the park my dude> Great Vid.
This is amazing. I've been looking for a vid about this, I grew up with all the stories. My dad served on the Bonnie and he was a part of the 880 squad as a radio navigator in the Grumman tracker, doing anti sub warfare. he talked about the short time they had fighters with them because I always questioned why they didn't have fighter support . thank you for making this video man. much love.
This was the first time i saw a Banshee in color, thanks to your footage of that pristine museum exhibit. Many thanks for that!
Excellent video- this kind of quality examination of Canadian defence in the Cold War, a high point, always welcome and there's not enough of it.
This is the first video that I’ve seen about the F2H Banshee. Thank you.
Edit: fixed spelling.
An Excellent informative VT about an important friend across the Pond.and a small tribute to your very brave pilots.
The Bonnie was loved by all who sailed on her. Always fun a landing experience.
Awesome video, keep up the good work!
Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.
What an awesome time when Canadians knew their history and loved their country !
Nah many Canadians are patriotic and good folks, just the Govt lets them down
Are you suggesting Canadians don't know their history and love their country?
Great video about a beautiful plane ! Thank you ! It's a shame he didn't serve longer and didn't have a replacement.
great video as always
Thanks. I always loved the Banshee
Great video!
If only we still had an aircraft carrier lol
I wish we had decent submarines. The hand me down Upholders are just sad.
you do its called the united states.
We need 3...one in each ocean.
I always wanted to see a video on are naval aircraft. Another great video!
Another excellent video on a little known aspect of naval aviation. Lots of footage and information which you’d struggle to find elsewhere. I particularly like the way the author blends in the political background to procurement decisions. It would be great to see a longer set of videos covering the evolution of the Canadian aircraft industry during the 1939-45 war taking in the expansion of the RCAF and the vital Commonwealth Air Training Plan and Atlantic Ferry organisations. Thank you again!
I was an Avtech/crewman VS880 Shearwater on Trackers when they decommissioned her. Would have been my next posting but I did get to march in the decomm. ceremony. I can still feel my feet on her flight deck.
Hey im really liking these videos almost no one talks about the Canadian military and its equipment, u should do some naval ships and ground equipment as well
Man haven't seen you post in a while glad to see you back with another great Canadian aircraft history vid.👍
Well done and thank you for video!!
Another excellent instalment of Canadian aviation history and well worth the wait.
I never knew that Canada had Banshees or had them updated for the Sidewinder missile, or an aircraft carrier. That's an expense they figure they can do without.
An uncle serverd aboard the Maggie in the 1950s. Wonderful to hear her mentioned.
I remember well seeing the Bonnie in Halifax Harbour and earlier steaming past Sambro Island. Indeed, navy pilots used The Sambro light tower as a marker for flights.
As a boy it was so cool when planes from Shearwater would waggle their wings or sometimes make diving runs on me as I waved at or ran after them my arms outstretched like wings. They'd always salute as they flew low past the island. That always made a small boy's day!
I was on the MAGGIE in 54.
@@gillesgoddard3487 if memory serves my uncle served in 1953.
my father served on the Maggie and the Bonnie and so many others when my twin brothers were born he wanted to call one Cape and one Scott after the Cape Scott. The Navy was amazing in those days
Good job with the background music volume, just audible.
Another great video!! I enjoy the history you bring to life.
Especially when you point out the unknown tactical advantage the Canadian designed and built Clunks had over ALL their competition.
Man I’m grinding the US war thunder Aviation Tech tree to get the F2H Banshee and put RCM Skin or markings on it
They could make a canadian sub techtree and put all aicraft that is presented on this channel haha plzzzzz
@@TheMetalheadQC they might add the CF-100 to the British tech tree someday
Imagine them adding the Argus at like 5.7 with the AGM-12Bs they tested on it lol
As for the CF-100s, those would be great, especially the 100 mk4 since it gets both guns and rockets, while having pretty good engines
I can’t wait to get the F2H-2.
Banshees weren't used by the RCAF . They were only navy (RCN)
Beautiful and Clean airplane.
father server on her sometime between 1961 though 1968 with other ships he serve on til we got our Obean class uk subs where he serve til 1971/72 I remember going in one of the subs as honorable discharge/retire from navy. I always wanted a model of of her my eyes/hand deal make that a not go.
Well done video. It was very informative and a good over view of the Banshee in Canadian service.
I have never seen video of air operations on HMCS Bonaventure.
My old man was a pilot on the Bonnie from '57 to '59, then did the mail run from '64 to the end in '70. Took lots of 8mm film in '58 and 59. I'm a Shearwater brat myself.
Very interesting and and (imo) well presented.
Thank you for this.
Thank you sooo much. I have been waiting for this!
Ohhhh yeah. So stoked
Very cool. Thanks for posting another accurate and informative work-up.
These videos leave me wondering if Polyus and I ever had a history class together in uni at carleton and they absorbed some of my canadiana energy
A great video well done! Very informative thank you!
I've got a model of one sitting on a shelf. Doing the background research was interesting.
I built this model too, in RCN markings
Keep these awsome videos coming!
Wow. Canada had aircraft carriers and a real navy. Those were the days.
i just wanted to comment and tell you how much i enjoy this series and how its nice to see Canadian aviation history content, i think the navy museum in Calgary has examples of all the navy aircraft used by canada
Thanks. Always great to see something different.
Very interesting indeed! Thank you for this great video!
It makes one wonder whether or not the decision to get rid of our Fleet Air Arm was a good one... Looking at the world's carrier operators Canada seems to be one of the only country to have previously operated aircraft carriers and got rid of them. There was previously Australia and Brazil but now both countries have new helicopter carriers in service. That leaves Canada and Argentina, which I think speaks for itself.
You need a landing helicopter deck with F35Bs given the current scramble for the artic
@@erikgustafson9319 Yes. Of course I'm not in the backstages of the Navy but, from what I know this could be the single best argument for carrier procurement in Canada. Given the lack of infrastructures and the fact that there's not going to be more build any time soon, helicopter carriers would be force multipliers for Arctic ops.
@@erikgustafson9319 Italy already done with the Cavour's deck upgrades and now Japan is upgrading the Izumos for F-35Bs.
As an aging American boomer, I admire Canada's cost-effective use of Banshees, Voodoos, Starfighters, and Freedom Fighters. Those respectable aircraft were quickly bypassed here in the States by the Defense Department's "money-to-burn" mindset. In 2021, the still-undeployable Ford-class carriers, and the barely-flyable-at-supersonic-speeds F-35, are the latest examples of that mindset.
On a more hopeful note: I'd really enjoy a documentary about the cancelled Canada-class SSN's: the "boats" that Russian (and American) submariners didn't want to see built...
What's an Canada-class SSN?
@@intercommerce They were a proposed class of nuclear subs built from licensed designs from either Britain or France here in Canada but with reactors imported from either country. They faced significant opposition here due to projected cost, potential changes to the balance of power with the Warsaw Pact and from abroad, mostly the US, who essentially didn't want us to be able to exercise and enforce our sovereignty, particularly in the Arctic. They did so by using a pair of treaties, one that allowed them to block the sale of nuke reactors from the UK to a third party (Canada) and one that allowed them to block the purchasing of nuclear reactors from a third party (France).
Thanks for another great video!
Well researched, presented, and produced sir.
Excellent video!
I wish Canada still had aircraft carriers. Very sad. Parliament is mostly "missing in action" when it comes to the need for a larger military with top of the line equipment and more personnel. Canada's political parties are more interested in getting votes by how much taxpayer dollars they can shower on supporters and special interests instead of investing it in national defence.
We'd need to probably triple our fleet to be able to deploy a carrier, we just don't have the bodies to crew that many ships, forget the extra taxes we'd have to pay in order to not only buy the ships but to keep them active. As much as I would love to see us with a larger navy and a carrier it just isn't feasible and we're better off with "our" navy aka the USN.
@@KMCA779 Oui nous pouvons avoir une grande armée moderne. Nous gaspillons beaucoup d'argent inutilement. Nos sommes mal administrer, des incompétants.
@@KMCA779 well if we had 340,000,000 taxpayers we likely could problem is 40,000,000 don't create the same tax base
loved to see my father in uniform perfect haircut perfect shiny footwear the different color uniform as he went up in rank. Love the navy uniform when the navy was just the navy and the army was the army the good old days.
I am enjoying your channel, keep it up. To bad our governments screwed the Canadian Aerospace /Aircraft industries. We could of have been a world leader in those industries. Canada has built some amazing Canadian Designed Aircraft. Keep up the great video output.
It would be great to see an interview with some of the crew that sailed during the Cuban missile crisis. What must have gone through their heads waiting for the world to potentially fall into nuclear war?
My grandfather served on the HMS Nabob. He was a diver and survive the torpedo attack. RIP Fred Pitt.
Video suggestion: A220 or CSeries and/or the Challenger Series from Bombardier
@@polyus_studios also, do you have DHC 8 or DHC 6 Twin Otter?
Politicians can be so short sighted especially Canadian politicians
I saw the one at the Calgary Military Museum
I like this channel, the subjects are very well researched.
I am really enjoying your videos on Canadian aircraft history. I have one small ask though.
You consistently list Imperial conversions in brackets for any statistics/measurements with the exception of pound of thrust alongside kilonewtons. As a Canadian I'm pretty comfortable understanding both metric and imperial measurements, but I'm lost on kilonewtons.
Shouldn't power be listed in kilowatts?
I don’t know where you got your Banshee specs from, but they’re significantly out. Also, Puncher and Nabob were American escort carriers built in Seattle. They were sent to Great Britain as part of the lend/lease agreement. The RN kept them as HMS ships, crewed by Canadians, but the aircraft were flown by British pilots.
Looking at the GC website, I see what you mean. Unfortunately, its wrong. What they’ve published are the specs for the 1st prototype McDonnell FH Phantom. The original F2H has specs listed on the Boeing website. The models up to F2H-2 were the same. The F2H-3 was ‘approximately’ 8 feet longer (2.4m) to accommodate the radar equipment and larger internal fuel tanks. F2H-4 variants were identical to the -3 externally. You can see the Boeing published specs here www.boeing.com/history/products/f2h-banshee.page
I saw the Bonaventure in Halifax in the 1960's.
Fantastic! This is a blast from my past. Served in Maggie, 1954 as Electrician's Mate. !957 switched to Naval Air. Spent years at Shearwater maintaining Trackers, Banshees, HO4S and Sea King Helos and other aircraft. Later in Bonnie with HS-50 Sea King squadron. Also involved in Helo Haul Down System Evaluation with VX-10. Spent time at NAMS teaching electrical and instrument systems. Only one complaint- you should never put the word "the" before HMCS! RCN for ever!!
Greetings; ABLM Tripp, HMCS Gatineau.
Hi John, I can outdate you! I was an OSEM in Maggie, the days of the black hats. remember that? I don't think we have a Navy today, All recruits are army trained, British army drill and ranks. I think they are more like Marines, sea-borne army. Bravo Zulu to you.
another great video man, keep it up
Another cracking video - well done! I saw the 'Bonnie' when she visited Pompey shortly before decommissioning - nice looking ship.
p.s. I agree with the other comments - no need for 'the' before 'HMCS', but it's a nitpicking point and doesn't detract from a well researched and produced video.
A rather good video, bravo! Sadly the size, capabilities, and contribution of the Canadian Navy during the post-war (and even sometimes during the WWII) period are overlooked by so many people. The winding down of the Canadian Navy and that of the "mother country" is often lamented but the changing fiscal situations of the Commonwealth nations necessitated it and it can be seen as part of the desired "peace dividends". As long as this marvellous history is remembered we should be happy, not wistful.
It's Friday night, I'm off to the Beaverbank
Great video, as always!
My body is ready, let's do this!!!!!!!!!!
amazing small turbojet engines
Australia also had a Majestic class carrier, HMAS Melbourne, which American pilots also refused to land on! 🤣
Wasn't that the one that sliced friendly ships in half?
@@Joshua_N-A yep, that happened to HMAS Melbourne twice! HMAS Voyager and USS Frank E. Evans, both destroyers. The destroyers were both found to be at fault in the collisions thought Melbourne earned a reputation as a jinxed ship.
We actually had 2! HMAS Sydney was really only used for training and transport though
@@frostedbutts4340 indeed! Sydney way used as a transport after Melbourne was commissioned because Melbourne had an angled flight deck and Sydney didn’t. Sydney became nicknamed the Vung Tau Ferry during the Vietnam War.
Don't forget HMAS Sydney affectionately named "The Vung Tau Ferry."
You have a factual error at 0:36. HMS Nabob and HMS Puncher were not British-made, they were American Bogue-class carriers (USS Edisto and USS Willapa) operated under lend-lease. The RCN wanted to operate the carriers but the rules of the lend-lease agreement forbade it. A loophole was found by having the crew be Canadian while under British command.
And Nabob had an unfortunate ending after its one and only operational mission
Very well done video! Had no clue we even had a navy.
Tu affiches ton manque de culture.
Dad and his buddy would play cat and mouse games . Dad on the Ojibway and his good buddy taking off from the Bonny in a Tracker. After all was said and done a proper drinking session at RA Park commenced, Mom was not amused.
The wives all had problems. We hairybags had our ideals and women were constantly trying to change us. they should have come to sea in a Restigouche class DDE and accepted us or not married us eh.
HMS Puncher (D79) USS Willapa (AVG-53/ACV-53/CVE-53) was a Bogue-class escort carrier (originally an auxiliary aircraft carrier) built during World War II for the United States Navy. Never seeing American service, the ship was transferred to the United Kingdom as part of Lend-Lease. The escort carrier was renamed HMS Puncher (D79) of the British Ruler class and crewed by the Royal Canadian Navy with aircrew from the Fleet Air Arm. Primarily used as an aircraft transport, Puncher took part in operations along the Norwegian coast towards the end of the war.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Puncher_(D79)
This video is great! Do you think you’ll do a video on the Challenger jet in its AWACS and transport role?
Canada could really do with 3-5 carriers. 1 for each coast, 1 for deployment and 2 for maintenance/rotation giving 3 active and 2 ready state.
While something like the US, UK, or French fleet carriers are far to large for canada's need, the Japanese DDH helicopter destroyers (aka aircraft carriers), like the Izumo class, at 1 billion each, and 19500 tons, or the smaller Hyūga-class at 14000 tons, have very small crews, only about 370, which compared to the 1000's for us carriers, in fact leans more again towards a Canadian destroyer crew size.
Operating a large group of full sized helicopters, these ships would be useful for marine patrol, enforcement, monitoring, and other duties. They are also designed to be used "if needed" as helicopter landing ships for transport of troops, but can serve as mobile hosptials, rescue centers, and such. The ability to bring to bear up to 18 helicopters into a disaster area along either coast, or even several VC-22 giving the ships the ability to operate aircraft up to 450 miles inland. The amount of use these ships could provide to the navy would be immense.
The Hyugas are ASW carriers, they even got torpedo launch tubes built into the hull. The Izumos are currently Japan's largest vessels & undergoing upgrade to become STOVL carriers. The Izumos were designed for F-35Bs in mind from the start. Izumo's cost for one ship is a bang for buck for its size.
@H Lafrond oh i know. and think of how much of this is actually because of "loss of tax revenue" because of all the Energy West BS.. demands to shut down the oil sands... and the whole keystone blocking.
The amount of damage these idiots have done to our economy...
Any truth to the persistent rumour that the updated and refitted Bonnie was swapped out for the worn out INS Vikrant during the two weeks the ship was unaccounted for on its way to the scrapyard in Japan in 1971? Both ships are long gone, but it is a rumour that has always intrigued me.
That's an interesting rumor. The timeframe certainly fits, as Vikrant's boilers were totally shot and the ship pulled out of service in June 1970, only to re-emerge in the spring of 1971.
Bonaventure was decommissioned in July 1970, and scrapped in Taiwan in 1971. It was scarcely 3 years out of a refit when decommissioned.
The Vikrant had faulty boilers in 1970 but they were never replaced until 1980 with brand new units, her boilers were reinforced with heavy steel straps between 1970/1980 which allowed the ship to operate at a reduced speed, it is just a myth as both ships had major differences
Even back then Canada bought used. I don't even recognize Canada of the past. A more confident and ambitious country. What happened! Now our navy, air force, and army rots from neglect.
BAD GOVERNMENT! Liberal and Conservative (remember the Arrow!).
Glory Days indeed!
oh yes the men took pride in there beloved navy and people respected them they were like movie stars.
HMCS Nabob was, well kinda sunk on its one and only combat operation. Oh, it limped, towed and managed to get back to Port. Well, safe harbour wasn't far away as it was returning to base. It proved so badly damaged with no useful role if repaired- the Battle of the Atlantic basically being over. Oh, the Captain: well, didn't get to captain anything again due to series of morale and safety matters. This was not to most lustrous career of a Canadian warship. The ship was technically a Royal Navy ship built be the Americans and crewed by not just Canadians but a Commonwealth of squadrons including quite a squadron of Kiwis, a few Aussies and some Poms who were to teach the Canucks the ropes.
I have never found how the ship ended with not the most inspiring name: if anyone could help.
I can’t see where an aircraft carrier would be useful in today’s Canadian navy but more patrol vessels and icebreakers would be a good idea. Oh, and maybe 8 modern and actually functional submarines, ideally nuclear for arctic work.
We do a lot of work in the North Atlantic and the pacific and a carrier can be quite useful as an ASW platform launching aircraft to find and track submarines they wouldn’t need to be huge like the US carriers maybe something like a queen Elizabeth class or the Japanese one
Jameson 123
If we are talking about defending our coastal waters then land based aircraft, patrol vessels and sensors would certainly do the job.
Aircraft carriers are for operations outside of a country’s waters so why would Canada want to tie up our defence budget on something like that?
@@marcusaetius9309 with tensions in the South Pacific right now having a way to project all the way out there would be useful. It definitely shouldn’t be a top priority functional submarines, patrol vessels that are more heavily armed, and supply ships should be at the top but a carrier would definitely be a nice to have. And maybe if we actually started spending the 2% required for NATO members we could get what we need quicker so that they can get what they want later.
Jameson 123
The tensions in the pacific have zero to do with Canada. If we were not part of NATO we would be able to afford more modern kit for our military and maybe even make the systems ourselves.
@@marcusaetius9309 it does matter what’s happening in the pacific because we have a pacific coast Canada has a two ocean navy there’s also the fact that a lot of trade is with China and that we have allies namely Australia and New Zealand we may have to support during a conflict.
Maybe it's time to bring back Project Habbskuk? . The ice Aircraft carrier. Hey, worst case scenario it'd make a great spot for a covid free destination for the Winter Classic hockey game:) .
Canada had such a formidable military force, comparable to the superpowers of the day, post WW2, the massive drawdown is staggering. I know canada wa full capable of industry, economy strains had to of been big, but it's sad to think, like the UK, a great power reduced to getting scraps of other nations.
But Canada is no less capable or badass today 🇨🇦
my father tried to join at 16 and could not but at 17 he was in He loved the navy I have to say living in Halifax of Dartmouth was exciting with the Navy all around loved when the Navy had their own uniforms.
Having served in the Forces, it always makes me wonder what the Government is doing.
All because the Government is not willing to spend money on the Forces.
Not ignoring the fact that we can't even defend our sovereign territory.
And we have some of the best troops in the world.
Look at our history, damn shame 😒