Feds launch new aircraft to improve conservation and protection of oceans
by CM Staff
The Dash-8 aircraft will allow fishery officers to expand their range of operations
The first of Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s long-range maritime patrol aircraft—the Dash-8—becomes operational. Photo credit: PAL Aerospace (CNW Group/Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Canada)
ST. JOHN’S, Nfld. — In 2019, Fisheries and Oceans Canada announced a five-year, $128 million contract with PAL Aerospace-located in St. John’s, to deliver a new fleet of four aerial surveillance aircrafts, including two long-range maritime patrol aircrafts. When operational, the planes will fly out of three bases of operation: St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador; Halifax, Nova Scotia; and a brand new facility in Campbell River, British Columbia.
On Feb. 19, the long-range maritime patrol aircraft — the Dash-8 — became operational. The Dash-8 aircraft will allow fishery officers to expand their range of operations, providing them with essential tools to combat illegal fishing and enhance Canada’s maritime security.
“Canada’s fishery officers perform a crucial service, helping to conserve and protect our country’s marine and coastal areas,” said Bernadette Jordan, minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, in a prepared statement. “When we invest in environmental protections, we’re investing in our future.”
This new fleet of aerial surveillance aircrafts will also be a crucial tool for the enforcement of measures put in place by the Government of Canada to protect our endangered whales. This includes monitoring the Gulf of St. Lawrence for compliance to fisheries management measures for North Atlantic right whales, as well as monitoring critical habitat areas for Southern Resident killer whales.
