The Big Reveal

 On Friday June 28 the Minister of National Defence announced Canada's largest shipbuilding project since the Second World War. Irving Shipbuilding Inc will build fifteen destroyers for the Royal Canadian Navy over a 25 year construction period, employing 10,000 people. The actual ships will be built at Halifax Shipyard, but components will be sourced from across the country and abroad.

The current project estimate of $40 billion will of course balloon with inflation and all the other factors that effect the cost of shipbuilding. There is little doubt however that the economic boom that has been underway in Halifax for the past few years will only continue or even grow. (There have been and will be more government announcements about needed infrastructure expansion.)

When the government announced the new National Shipbuilding Strategy in 2010 it really meant a ground up reconstruction of the country's nearly defunct shipbuilding industry. The idea was to build a "sustainable, long-term shipbuilding plan" as opposed to the previous boom and bust cycle. [After the current RCN frigates were built in 1990s, there was so little other work for the Saint John shipyard that it was closed.] 

Halifax Shipyard was essentially demolished and rebuilt from scratch.

 As the new plan evolved Halifax Shipyard became the location for construction of "surface combatants" and Seaspan Shipyard in British Columbia the centre for "non-combatants". Both facilties had to be rebuilt and re-equipped to eventually build sophisticated naval vessels and so were contracted to build a variety of other government ships. Construction of these ships has provided valuable opportunities for worker training and the development of design, supply chain, and operational management skills.

Seaspan was contracted to build research ships before embarking on the two RCN fleet replenishment ships (AORs), called the Joint Support Ships (JSS) program.  The AORS are currently under construction, with delivery over the next few years.

Halifax Shipyard has built a series of Arctic and Offshore Patrol Vessels for the RCN. The fifth of these was launched late last year and is fitting out now. The sixth ship is under construction. Two variants for the Canadian Coast Guard will follow. These two were added as a stop gap to ensure continuity and skill retention at the shipyard until the surface combatant project gets rolling.

At the announcement on Friday there was a ceremonial "test weld" conducted, but it will still be some time before actual construction starts. All the recent projects have included test work and mock-ups that have not formed part of the actual ships.

Destroyers

The big news on Friday was that the fifteen new ships will all be classed as destroyers. My recollection was that the program was initially conceived to replace the current RCN Halifax class frigates with twelve similar ships and to then build some upgrade / variants to become leaders or command ships.

HMCS Halifax as delivered.

The explanation for the change in nomenclature and size of ships, according to reliable sources, is that the nature of marine warfare has changed from anti-submarine to defence against aircraft and that all the ships will need to be command and control platforms. This will necessitate a larger ship to carry the radars and long range weapons (and power generation for them) - and will need to be an estimated 8,000 tonnes displacement.

As large ships with greater capabilities they will be able to take on the screening duties for aircraft carriers and amphibious assault groups and the scouting once conducted by cruisers

 [The above is a very sketchy outline of a much more complex topic. More detail is beyond the scope of this blog. I can suggest a much more informed description here: https://rusi-ns.ca/types-of-rcn-combatant-warships/ ]

In any event the new destroyers will be called the River class, with the first three ships to be named Fraser, Saint-Laurent and Mackenzie. The current schedule has the Fraser launched in "the 2030s" and commissioned in 2035. The first batch of nine ships is to be completed in the 2040s and the rest in the 2050s. 

The names of the ships will be selected from previous ships of the RCN which were also named for rivers. Some of those will have served in Second World War II and others were built during the "cold war" era. For example there have been two HMCS Frasers in the RCN. The first HMCS Fraser H48 was a former British destroyer HMS Crescent built in 1932 and serving with the RCN from 1936 to 1940. It sank in collision in 1940 with the loss of 47 lives.

The second HMCS Fraser DDE 233, later DDH 233, was commissioned in 1957 and decommissioned in 1994.

The second HMCS Fraser paying off in Halifax.

Fraser (ii) was laid up in Bridgewater, NS from 1997 to 2009 when it was towed back to Halifax and eventaully to Port Maitland, Ontario where it was broken up in 2011. For more see July 2009 Shipfax.

Shipfax cannot over emphasize the importance of this announcement to the Halifax region including the port. It will also be the subject of many posts over the coming years.

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RCN

 It was a busy morning (July 15) for the Royal Canadian Navy. Two frigates returned from NATO assignments, accompanied on the last leg of the trip by a supply ship.

The first movement however was the departure of HMCS Moncton MM 708, displaying its Battle of the Atlantic disruptive (camouflage) paint scheme. It met the inbound ships outside of the Maugher's Beach lighthouse.

 

The frigates emerged from the fog and were greeted in the Middle Ground and escorted into the harbour by the Halifax Fire and Emergency Services Fireboat 1, Kjipuktuk, with an impressive water display.

The first ship in line was HMCS Montreal FFH 336, which has been away since January 19.

 It was followed by HMCS Halifax FFH 330 which left its home port March 19.

The ships sailed in west of George's Island, allowing close up views, and meant that the ships were within vocal range of shore. Spectators at Pier 20 could see and hear (and be heard by) those on the ships. As usual, all available hands were on deck.

 

Following the frigates was the supply ship Asterix [not pictured] which sailed from Halifax July 6. It met the frigates off Newfoundland and accompanied them for a port call in St.John's last weekend.

Although Montreal and Halifax have returned from Operation Reassurance, two RCN coastal defence vessels, HMCS Kingston and HMCS Summerside sailed from Halifax June 26 for the Baltic to join the same operation. 

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Arrivals and Departures

 Among the arrivals and departures today (March 19) were the following:

1. The research ship Atlantis from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute on Cape Cod. Woods Hole is to the United States as the Bedford Institute is to Canada - the country's primary east coast oceanographic research establishment. With so many of Canada's research ships out of service for various reasons, I assume the Atlantis has been engaged to carry out some work for Canada.

The sleek looking ship was built in 1997 by Halter Marine in Moss Point and is a 3,180 gt vessel fitted out to carry 22 crew and between 22 and 34 scientists and technicians depending on the mission. The ship is perhaps best known as the base for "Alvin"  DSV-2, the  HOV (Human Occupied Vehicle) used for deep ocean research. A gantry on the ship's stern is used to deploy the HOV. With a crew of three the submersible has made numerous notable dives, including exploration of the Titanic.

Atlantis is actually a United States Navy vessel, with pennant AGOR-25, but is on bareboat charter to Woods Hole.

2.     Irving Oil's Woodside terminal received the tanker Torm Voyager from Amsterdam. 

Ships of the Danish Torm fleet are usually easy to identify by their black hulls and burnt orange colured superstructures, but this one is clearly an exception. Built in 2008 by Brodotrogir in Trogir, Croatia it is a 26,809 gt, 45,916 dwt chemical/product tanker. 

Originally named Siteam Voyager it  was renamed Team Voyager in 2018. It was only acquired and renamed by Torm AS in June of 2021. The ship is not due for a docking until next year, so Torm will likely wait to repaint the ship. It may then look more like this:

File photo of a typical Torm tanker - the Torm Camilla in Halifax in 2019.

3. HMCS Halifax sailed this afternoon for the Baltic region in support of NATO. It was originally planned that the ship would be going to the Mediterranean, but since the Russian invasion of Ukraine the destination has been changed.

 

The ship has been working up offshore for this deployment for the last several weeks. [ See my post of March 8 ]. Its usual berth at HMC Dockyard makes it one of the most visible of RCN ships.

 

 HMCS Halifax at HMC Dockyard on January 1.

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Halifax - a nuclear port

 With the war clouds roiling in Europe, the population of Halifax cannot help but be reminded of the Port of Halifax's role in wartime. Halifax was founded in 1749 as a counter to the fortress of Louisbourg, and has been used by naval vessels ever since. It has also played an important role in merchant shipping during every major conflict ever since. The population has paid the price in various ways but has also benefited, with the military, defense based industries and HMC Dockyard as the major employers in the City.

As a member of NATO, Canada contributes ships to standing forces and participates in exercises with other NATO countries, most notably the United States. For the past few weeks, the next ship to be assigned to NATO in the Mediterranean has been working up off Halifax. HMCS Halifax put into port today (March 8) and anchored in the lower harbour.

 It was announced in late February that the ship will be sent to Europe in direct response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Sister ship HMCS Fredericton Montreal sailed from Halifax January 19 for a six month deployment with NATO.
 

Halifax has seen very few United States warships recently, there was a very significant US Navy arrival today. (March 6).

An as yet to be identified US submarine arrived at noon time and tied up at Navy Jetty Alpha.

 Accompanied by four navy tugs and a fleet diving unit boat, the sub made its way to the Shearwater pier. All US submarines are nuclear powered, and they always tie up at Shearwater rather than at HMC Dockyard itself, which is in the centre of town.

As if we need more reminders of the nuclear age, the cargo ship CLI Pride made one of its seasonal calls in Halifax, arriving yesterday and sailing today. I have covered this ship many times in the past see: CLI Pride references

 We usually only see the ship in winter when it avoids the St.Lawrence River with its cargoes of uranium hexaflouride. This year however the ship did make its January trip to the St.Lawrence as there was not much ice. The ship is owned by Compass Schiffahrts and operated by SMS Bereederung of Haren (Ems), Germany.As with many German ships its flies the flag of Antigua and Barbuda.

On this trip the ship loaded in Ellesmere Port (near Liverpool UK), site of a large nuclear power plant called the Ince Power Station. Spent uranium from European reactors is sent to Canada for reprocessing to make it viable for long term storage or to be prepared for re-enrichment. Canada also exports uranium hexaflouride. As usual Wikipedia provides a potted story about the material see: Hex

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HMCS Halifax returns

 It was a subdued return to port for HMCS Halifax this morning, an unfortunate disappointment to families and well wishers after the ship's successful six month plus deployment to NATO. At almost the last minute families were informed that a crew member had tested positive for COVID-19 and the usual arrival festivities were cancelled. After these lengthy absences families are usually allowed admittance to HMC Dockyard to greet loved ones.

It was a suitably gloomy and muggy day for the ship's return, and only a portion of the ship's compliment appeared on deck compared to its New Year's Day departure when the rails were lined with crew.

No details were made available regarding how the COVID-19 virus (or which variety) entered the ship, nor how a quarantine regime will be implemented. The ship did stop in Iceland for a courtesy visit on its way back from Europe. It also passed very close to land as it passed Newfoundland earlier this week.

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HMCS Halifax send off

 The waterfront was lined with well wishers at mid-day today to send off HMCS Halifax  FFH 330 on a six-month deployment with NATO's Operation Reassurance in the Mediterranean Sea.

The ship's company lined the rails to wave to family and friends. Lead ship of the Halifax class of Canadian Patrol Frigates, the ship was launched in 1988 and commissioned in 1992. It has since received major upgrades to systems and weaponry. It was also reinforced to carry the Cyclone helicopter. It had a year long refit in 2016-2017 and returned from its most recent posting with NATO in January 2020.

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Big Sendoff

 The Royal Canadian Navy organized a ceremonial departure this morning as three ships sailed for the Joint Warrior exercises in Europe. The ships went to Bedford Basin first where they formed up in line then made for sea. There was no doubt a formal salute as they passed HMC Dockyard. With helos buzzing about overhead and even an Aurora aircraft from CFB Greenwood flying past, it was a major send off.

HMCS Ville de Quebec was lead ship, followed by HMCS Halifax and the chartered supply ship Asterix.

The ships also passed west of George's Island allowing a close up view for well wishers and families on the Halifax side of the harbour.

It was just a month over thirty years ago when there was another major send off in Halifax. On August 24, 1990 three RCN ships sailed for the Arabian Gulf.  Canada joined a 35 nation coalition in the Gulf War., in retaliation for Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait. Canada's contribution was called Operation Friction and was part of the US lead Desert Shield/ Desert Storm. In addition to aircraft, Canada sent three ships from Halifax, andHMCS Huron from Esquimalt, all on very short notice.

 

 HMCS Athabaskan

 

HMCS Terra Nova

(with salute from CFAV Firebird)

HMCS Protecteur

It was the first time Canada's military has participated in offensive combat since the Korean conflict, so the sendoff was spectacular, with Sea King helicopters in formation, many spectator craft in the harbour including Bluenose II, and crowds lining the shores.

We should hope that it will not be necessary to go to war again, but is important that the Canadian forces remain prepared. Military exercises are part of that effort, so we wish the participants well and a safe return.

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HMCS Halifax back to port

After an overnight sea trial HMCS Halifax crept back into port late this morning and tied up at HMC Dockyard.

Wearing the NATO badge on its bridge wing, HMCS Halifax re-enters its home port at a very slow speed late this morning.

I speculated yesterday that repairs to an oil seal in one of the turbine compartments had been repaired, but apparently it is not yet ready to join its NATO mission in the Mediterranean. Certainly things happen on ships, but this must be a bit of an embarrassment for a ship that has been working up for this operation for some months.

Navy sources have given no time line for completion of repairs, but I am sure after recent publicity about the 2004 fire aboard HMCS Chicoutimi that they are taking extra precautions. The cause of the fire was determined to be the crew's failure to follow standard operating procedures by leaving hatches open. The resulting ingress of water caused an electrical short and fire that gutted much of the interior of the boat.

HMCS Chicoutimi, on the heavy lift ship Tern April 5, 2009 for transfer to the west coast and rebuilding.

That fire aboard the ex RN submarine Upholder on its delivery trip to Canada resulted in the loss of one life and serious long term health consequences for most if not all of the rest of the crew. Since repaired and rebuilt, HMCS Chicoutimi is based on the west coast.
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HMCS Halifax back to sea

HMCS Halifax sailed this evening after being forced to return to port on Sunday (July 7). The ship had sailed on Saturday July 6 to take up its duties as part of the NATO Operation
REASSURANCE in the Mediterranean. An oil leak in a gas turbine compartment posed a serious risk of fire and the ship came back to HMC Dockyard to have a seal replaced.

That work has apparently been completed in quick time, and the ship has now put back to sea. However this may only be a trials trip as AIS indicates the ship returning to Halifax tomorrow.

The RCN has been a part of this NATO mission since 2014, and Halifax is to be the flagship for this 6 month deployment.

HMCS Halifax FFH 330 was the lead ship of its class of frigates, and was commissioned in 1992. It completed its life extension program in 2011 and has since received a major systems upgrade and refit.

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Ships named Halifax - HMCS Halifax

The most enduring ship to carry the name Halifax will almost certainly be the current HMCS Halifax, lead ship of the Royal Canadian Navy's Canadian Patrol Frigates. It is not the first naval ship to carry the name however.
The first pre-dates Canada's confederation, and was HMS Halifax, a schooner built in 1768. It commemorated Halifax, which was founded in 1749 by Edward Cornwallis, as a naval base and a town. Its strategic importance as Warden of the North was certainly worthy as the namesake of a naval vessel. [Incidentally Halifax was named for George Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax, president of the British Board  of Trade at the time of the founding. We are forever grateful that the city was named for the peer's Werst Yorkshire territory, not his family name.]

See an excellent history of the first HMS Halifax
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Halifax_%281768%29
and a great video of the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic's model:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpSDgGOTtgg

Four subsequent RN ships carried the name Halifax, between 1775 and 1814. Among them the forner USS Ranger , an 18 gun sloop captured in 1780 and sold in 1781 and another 18 gun sloop built in Halifax in 1806 and broken up in 1814. The rest were purchased schooners that only operated a year or two.


During World War II the Royal Canadian Navy was built up from an insignificant blip on the world  naval stage to a major armada, most of which was built in Canada since the other allies were busy building up their own navies.
The problem of naming these ships, so as not to cause confusion with ships of other nations was generally resolved by selecting Canadian cities as namesakes. Some slight variations were needed, such as Norsyd (for North Sydney) and Thorlock (for Thorold  and the Welland Canal's flight  locks) but generally the city's name was used, and as a byproduct created good will in those communities, even if far removed from the sea.

The most prolific ship in the Canadian Navy was the corvette, and after exhausting Flower names, as the RN had used, the ranks of Canadian towns and cities were added to the list. That the name of Halifax should be used alongside some very small and militarily unimportant towns may have been deliberate. A lot of time was taken to try to conceal Halifax's naval importance, often not naming it in news reports. Instead the reference was usually "an eastern Canadian port" - a title it shared with Sydney, NS and even Saint John, NB and Shelburne, NS which had important naval and convoy roles.

Therefore the first HMCS Halifax was a lowly corvette, built by Collingwood Shipyards in 1941 and paid off in 1945.It was a member of the Revised Flower class and was the first ship delivered with the extended forecastle, which improved seakeeping and increased accommodation space. Halifax worked as a convoy escort in the Caribbean and the Atlantic.Her pennant number was K327 and there are several images of her online.

Although she paid off in Sorel, July 12, 1945, her fate was not the scrappers torch. Instead she was laid up in Sydney, NS. There is a report that she was the first ship sold by War Assets Corp following the end of hostilities. It has also been reported that she was converted to a salvage vessel. This did not happen.
Instead she went to Thompson Bros Machinery Co Ltd in Liverpool, NS (owned by K.C.Irving) where she was hastily converted to a cargo vessel. Retaining her steam plant, she received cargo holds fore and aft and a crew deckhouse on her after deck.Relatively fast ships were needed in the Caribbean for short hauls of nearly ripe produce, where sophisticated refrigeration was not needed. Banana Shipping Service Ltd of Houston, TX placed the ship under the Honduran flag, but in 1950 sold it to Transportes Maritimos y Refrigerado SA of Villa Hermosa, Mexico. The ship flew the Mexican flag for the next five years and continued working in the Gulf of Mexico. The last reliable report of her was in 1955. After that the story gets murky, and her name was finally dropped from Lloyd's in 1963.  

There was then a long gap before the navy selected Halifax as a namesake again. That came in the  1980s as the RCN entered another building program. Halifax was chosen as the name of the new class of multi-purpose ships, to be called Canadian Patrol Frigates. Accordingly the lead ship was laid down  at Saint John Dry Dock and Shipbuilding March 19, 1987, launched April 30, 1988 and handed over to the RCN June 28, 1991.

The future HMCS Halifax conducted builder's trials in Halifax in October and November 1990, but returned to Saint John for handover.

On June 29, 1992 it was formally commissioned into the RCN as HMCS Halifax.By the autumn of 1993 it was prepared for duty and in April 1994 sailed to the Adriatic Sea for NATO. Since then it has conducted the usual sovereignty patrols and participated in NATO and other exercises.
It also relieved HMCS Preserver as command and control centre during Operation Persistence, the recovery of Swissair flight 111 in St.Margaret's Bay (1998) and Operaton Hestia- the relief operations following the Haiti earthquake in 2010, where it, among other duties, was the aviation control centre for flights in and out of the Jacmel area.

On September 4, 2010 it began its mid-life refit at Halifax Shipyard under the Frigate Life Extension program. It returned to HMC Dockyard June 16, 2012 and made its first sea trial November 21, 2013.

The post-FELEX Halifax went alongside at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic this morning, but later moved back out into the harbour. While at anchor one of the new helicopters landed on its afterdeck.

Now what happens (he asked).

The Canadian Patrol Frigates were originally designed for a 30 year hull life and a 15 year equipment life. The latter has been dealt with, and the former seemed inevitably to lead to a year 2022 decommissioning for HMCS Halifax.

The Canadian government's National Ship Procurement Strategy had indicated that a Single Class Surface Combatant Project (SCSCP) would replace the Halifax class frigates and the Iroquois class destroyers  between 2018 and 2033. However the destroyers will be withdrawn from service well before the first of those ships sees the light of day. Upgrading the Halifax ships to destroyer status seems unlikely, since they are too small to start with, but there may be a stopgap temporary solution coming.

It seems that another upgrade may be on the horizon. Starting in 2017 or 2018, and extending beyond 2030, it will see at least some of the Halifax class, or possibly only the last six ships in the series (also known as the Montreal class) getting another life extension, consisting only of systems upgrades (such as new under water detection, unmanned aircraft, defensive missiles, etc.,) 
These improvements would extend the frigates lives from 2017 to perhaps 2030 or beyond..
This would seem to me that some of the first of the new SCSCPs will be built as destroyers, with replacement frigates nearer the end of the program.This is purely speculation on my part, but as I have said before the RCN without supply ships and without destroyers is really only half a navy.

In any event there will still be Halifax class frigates for some time to come and HMCS Halifax will be with us for at least another ten to fifteen years.

 

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Gimme Shelter

Bedford Basin became something of a parking lot last night as a major storm swept through Halifax. High winds sent many ships to anchor in the Basin. Two tankers left their berths to anchor and three navy ships came in from exercises. The navy's research ship Quest also came in and anchored in the lower harbour in anchorage #6.

 
Also in the lower harbour the supplier Atlantic Condor left its berth for anchorage #2, but did not anchor. Instead it maintained position through the night using its dynamic positioning DP2 system.

The bunkering tanker Algoma Dartmouth went to pier 9B to avoid the swells which would be coming into its normal berth at pier 34. The larger ships Oceanex Connaigra (awaiting parts at pier 25-26), Oceanex Sanderling at pier 36 and Zim Savannah at pier 41-42 put out extra lines and waited out the storm.

Meanwhile back in the Basin, Algoscotia, which had been at Ultramar in Eastern Passage took up posiotn in the north end of the Basin.

Also the tanker Overseas Kimolos, that had been at Imperial Oil, anchored in the north eastern sector of the Basin leaving lots of room for HMCS Iroquois to anchor closer to the Halifax shore.

 HMCS Ville de Quebec (332) and HMCS Halifax (330) anchored close along the Rockingham shore, giving an opportunity for a before and after comparison of ships. Ville De Quebec has not had its FELEX modernisation yet, and Halifax has completed its refit.

 

Ships in the Basin were almost joined by some wayward containers blown around at Fairview Cove. From what I could see, one was only shifted from its position, and the other tumbled off a stack onto the shore where it was then in the lee of the wind.

Container ships Atlantic Conveyor and Rotterdam Express at Fairview Cove and Zim Savannah  at Halterm resumed work this morning. Loading/unloading had been suspended yesterday due to high winds.

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Halifax and Fredericton - post FELEX update and post Halifax class [slightly revised]

1. HMCS Halifax reposes at the Docyard this afternoon. [A Canadian maple leaf flag that appears to be flying from the ship's stern, is actually on shore in Dartmouth.]

Of the four east coast RCN ships undergoing FELEX (Frigate Equipment Life Extension) programs, three are "ex shipyard" and one is still in progress.
HMCS Halifax was the first ship in the program, and it emerged in September 2011, then spent many months alongside at HMC Dockyard for other related work. HMCS Fredericton came out in October 2012 and after a similar period alongside, is now working up.
HMCS Montreal left the shipyard in July and is still in the "alongside" mode at the Dockyard. while HMCS Charlottetown is in the graving dock at Halifax Shipyard. It is due for completion of the shipyard program in April 2014.

2. HMCS Fredericton has spent the weekend at the north end of Bedford Basin tied up to trot buoys for trials.

For a fairly complete description of the scope of these refits see:

http://www.naval-technology.com/projects/halifax/

According to the latest schedule I have been able to find, HMCS Ville de Quebec is next in line to start in the fall of 2014, followed  preceeded by HMCS St. John's in the winter of 2013-2014 and HMCS Toronto in the summer of 2015. This is quite different in the order of ships (and the end dates) from what was originally published.

Why there has been such a long gap between the current Charlottetown refit and the next Ville de Quebec start is a mystery to me.

Someday we will learn how close Lockheed-Martin came to budget and timetable.

Meanwhile defense industry fat cats, in Halifax this weekend for a conference, while not being chauffered around town in a fleet of Audis (with Ontario license plates), were told that the the French company DCNS is eager to sell their design to Canada for the next class of frigates to be acquired under the NSPS. This was not news, as the splendid FS Aquitaine was here earlier this year and impressed most people.

3. FS Aquitaine on April 11, 2013, for comparison purposes.

4. Spy Central in the background, and a license plate with indigestion in the foreground. I hope this security conference attendee did not over indulge on the way to work.
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HMCS Halifax - way up in the Basin

HMCS Halifax has been anchoring well up in the north end of Bedford Basin this weekend. With a stiff southerly breeze, her mooring lines to two of the trot buoys are quite taught, while the lee side lines are slack.
The anchorage is known as Jonquière Bank, named for Jacques-Pierre de Taffanel de la Jonquière, Marquis de Jonquière, a French naval war hero and governor of New France.
He had the misfortune to be a passenger on the ill-fated Duc d'Anville's fleet when it arrived in Halifax (then Beau Bassin) in 1746. The battered and disease-ridden flotilla - sent from France to re-capture Acadia, soon lost its commander to a stroke, and its second in command after a suicide attempt, not to mention many of its troops to disease. De la Jonquière, although a passenger, and at the time governor general designate of New France, took command of the decimated flotilla.
The fleet had anchored in Birch Cove on its arrival in Halifax, not far from the anchorage area now carrying Joinquière's name.
For a potted history of d'Anville's expeditions see:
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duc_d%27Anville_Expedition