7/15/2004
By SUN OTTAWA BUREAU
OTTAWA -- The Canadian navy will sit out the war on terrorism for one year in an effort to give exhausted sailors a chance to recuperate. HMCS Toronto left the Arabian Sea and the American George Washington Carrier Strike Group July 4 with a broken Sea King helicopter on deck.
And the navy has quietly decided against dispatching a replacement ship until spring 2005 at the earliest.
The Sea King on HMCS Toronto has been grounded since June 25 after particles were discovered in its gearbox.
Naval Capt. Bruce Belliveau, Toronto's commanding officer, said the Sea King was available to hail foreign ships during 80% of the six-month deployment. It broke down during the frigate's preparations to leave.
"It's been a very, very busy six months," Belliveau said. His crew hailed 1,300 ships and boarded 123 of them, but didn't find any terrorists or criminal activity.
Defense spokesman Capt. Paul Doucette said the navy will dispatch a ship from the West Coast next year to join the war on terror, but hasn't determined which one or when it will be.
The one-year lull marks the first time the Canadian navy will be absent from the Arabian Sea since it dispatched HMCS Halifax in October 2001 to join the coalition against terrorism in Operation Apollo.
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