CFB Esquimalt


Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt is Canada's Pacific Coast naval base and home port to Maritime Forces Pacific and Joint Task Force Pacific Headquarters., 4,411 military personnel and 2,762 civilians work at CFB Esquimalt.
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Geography

The base occupies approximately at the southern tip of Vancouver Island on the Strait of Juan de Fuca, in the municipality of Esquimalt, adjacent to the western limit of the provincial capital, Victoria.

Facilities

CFB Esquimalt comprises facilities that include Naden, Her Majesty's Canadian Dockyard Esquimalt, Fleet Maintenance Facility – Cape Breton, a Fire Fighting and Damage Control School, the Naval Officer Training Centre Venture, and extensive housing including 716 personnel married quarters located at nine sites such as Belmont Park, WorkPoint, and Royal Roads.
The present dockyard and dry dock, known as HMC Dockyard Esquimalt, dates to the Royal Navy's Esquimalt Royal Navy Dockyard and was the Royal Navy's Pacific Station until 1911. Today it serves as the Canadian Naval Headquarters in the Pacific.

Operational and support units

Major units of the base are:
Due to their significance in Canadian naval history, four sites at CFB Esquimalt have been designated the Esquimalt Naval Sites National Historic Site of Canada.

Ships

As of March 2013, CFB Esquimalt services the following ships assigned to Canadian Fleet Pacific
CFB Esquimalt contains several recognized and classified federal heritage buildings on the Register of the Government of Canada Heritage Buildings.
The Institute for Stained Glass in Canada has documented the stained glass at the Multi-Faith Naval Chapel and the stained glass at the Old Naval and Garrison Church, now known as St Paul's Anglican.

Esquimalt Naval and Military Museum

CFB Esquimalt Naval & Military Museum is located at HMCS Naden. Building 20, part of Naden Museum Square is a Municipal Heritage Property. Building 37 part of the Naden Museum Square is also a Municipal Heritage Property and is also on the Canadian Register of Historic Places. HMCS Naden was named after the Dominion Government Ship Naden, which was commissioned as a tender for the Royal Naval College of Canada from 1918 to 1922 for training in sail. The museum is affiliated with: Canadian Museums Association, Canadian Heritage Information Network, Organization of Military Museums of Canada and Virtual Museum of Canada.

Other facilities

CFB Esquimalt operates a bus service to provide intra-base transportation.
The Lookout is the base newspaper, which covers local, national and international news with specific interest to Navy and Canadian Forces members and family issues.
Other properties that are part of CFB Esquimalt include the Albert Head training area near Albert Head, Metchosin, located approximately by road southwest of downtown Victoria. It occupies approximately, four of which are developed as training facilities. Fort Albert Head was established in the late 1800s along with Fort Rodd Hill and other installations, to provide shore defence for the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Victoria Harbour. The training area is used for Regular and Reserve Force training throughout nine months of the year and is home to the Regional Cadet Instructor School that trains Canadian Forces Cadet Instructors Cadre Branch that deliver the cadet program. During the summer months of June, July and August the area houses the Albert Head Air Cadet Summer Training Centre. Canadian Forces Maritime Experimental Test Range at Nanoose Bay is also part of CFB Esquimalt. The facility provides non-explosive technical testing of sonobuoys, torpedoes and other equipment. Naval Radio Section Aldergrove in the Fraser Valley houses transmitting and receiving equipment for long distance communications. Also, the CFB Esquimalt Base Fire Hall & Emergency Response Centre was founded to provide services to CFB Esquimalt and the civil community in the way of fire intervention and emergency response.

Economical facts