The Stations History
1958 - 1962
Commanding Officers:
W/C JW Fiander, CD August 1959 to October 1961
S/L LG McAllister, CD October 1961 to August 1963
RCAF Station Moisie in its’ early history was even more than today, an extremely important formation in the eyes of the civilian populace of the area. Sept-Iles was then a newly expanding community and as such, the station was often called upon to assist in times of need. One example which supports this statement was the conducting of a Fire Fighting course by the Station Fire Department for the Sept-Iles Fire Department from June to the end of August 1958. Additionally forest fires during this period required the unit to provide assistance from time to time.
A particularly demanding fire occurred on Moisie Point in late May of 1959 and 69 station personnel were called out to battle the blaze. The following day the fire was under control and only demanded the attention of 20 personnel. In February of 1960, an extremely high wind storm of 80 to 85 mph caused considerable flood damage in Moisie. Waves from the St. Lawrence washed out dykes and overflowed into Moisie village. Military personnel from the Station assisted in evacuating families from their homes.
The Search and Rescue Team was kept extremely active throughout this period; assisting in locating lost hunters, campers and fishermen and of course, aircraft. Fortunately most were successful, however, there are a few recorded instances in which the searchers were unsuccessful in their mission.
Undoubtedly, the most disappointing failure occurred during October 1958 and concerned a young USAF Captain by the name of Frey, who was flying to Goose Bay in his own Aeronca KWS (a light aircraft) from points unknown. The records outline that he landed on Lac Rapide, and was received on the Station on 10 October 1958 and provided with Rations and Quarters pending his departure on the last leg of his journey. He stayed three more days then departed at 1000 hrs local, 13 October 1958. At 1600 hrs, Goose Bay reported that they had seen no sign of Captain Frey’s plane, and a check with Lake Eon check point revealed that he hadn’t reported in to them. At this time a state of aircraft emergency was declared, and Goose Bay (then an American Base) initiated an air search along the Seven Islands/Goose Bay route. The air search involved both air and land search teams with; a Canso; a SAC (Strategic Air Command) aircraft (staging out of Seven Islands); and one USAF H-21 helicopter staging out of our station. Nine days later, word was received that the aircraft in question had been sighted on a lake near St. Augustin. This message had been relayed from St. Augustin through Havre St. Pierre and Seven Islands radio from the information provided by two hunters who had traveled two days to reach St. Augustin to relay their findings. The H-21 carried a ground search party from our squadron to the downed aircraft (20 miles inland from St. Augustin) where the searchers found a note left in the aircraft which indicated that Captain Frey had found a canoe cached on the lakeshore and was setting out in search of food and shelter. A thorough ground search of the area failed to locate the canoe or the Captain, and the search was consequently called off, much to the disappointment of the searchers.
A month after the Captain Frey incident, a request from Halifax Search & Rescue was initiated for the preliminary check-up for a civilian Seabee CF-FGG which was overdue on a flight from Knob Lake to Seven Islands. As the Quebec North Shore and Labrador railway line runs along this route all line stations were queried. Finally, after 3 hours and 35 minutes had elapsed, the aircraft was located at Mile 87 of the railroad.
The first record of the use of a Base Defence type force was in January 1958. The then new Station Security Plan was put to the test but the resulting chaos which occurred in the recall system called for further changes. The bugs were ironed out of the Station Plan shortly thereafter, and subsequent test results were most acceptable.
On the 15th of July 1958, the volatile Middle East situation caused an increase in Alert State of all defence forces in NORAD, and this station responded most admirably. Personnel on annual leave were recalled, the station Security Plan was activated, and in general all systems were tuned for the possibility of war. The crisis last only a few days after which the squadron reverted to its’ day-to-day Air Defence posture.
Throughout the next few years the unit was subjected only to simulated threats and live alerts of small scale, i.e., unknown aircraft flights due to pilot error, flight plan miscalculations, etc., and maintained its routine air vigilance until 24 October 1962. On that date, all NORAD forces increased their Alert State due to the Cuban missile crisis. 211 AC&W Squadron as well was placed on alert and, as was the case in the 1958 Middle East crisis, the BDF was called out and all sections responded in a most professional manner. The alert affected our unit for only a few days, at which time 211 Squadron reassumed its peace-time posture.
Operations
In an effort to improve the control capabilities of the squadron, in the early months of 1958, an aircraft simulator system known as the AN/GPS-T2 was installed by the Union Switch and Signal Corporation. This system could provide inputs into the radar displays which would simulate attacking enemy forces. It is reported that this system greatly improved the control abilities of the fighter controllers who were there at that time. It must be remembered that during these early years, the squadron’s primary role was not to control aircraft but to provide to 2 Sector Control, St. Margarets, NB, early warning of an enemy force. This training system was further improved upon when in October 1958 the GEOpsO, F/L Beland, the simulation training program officer, F/O Pengelly, and the NCO i/c of Operations, Sgt. Dyke, attended a 2-week Systems Development Corporation Indoctrination Course in Santa Monica, California, to sharpen their skills on their use of the simulation training system.
In late November of 1958, the first Sector simulated exercise took place. From that time onward exercises were conducted every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The results of the exercises were most favorable at the unit level even though the whole program was still in the infant stage. Interest among the crews was high and because of the simulator control experience there followed a steady increase in efficiency.
The Squadron underwent a dramatic change in May of 1959 when word was received that NORAD had concurred with ADC in allowing 211 Squadron’s role to be changed from a strictly early warning radar squadron to an aircraft identification function to that of an Air Defence Direction Center, (all the while reporting to 2 Sector HQ at St. Margarets). When the dust settled and all changes had taken place, the Squadron had changed its call sign from Scabbard to Crowbar, added two Height Finder radars, moved its Air/Ground/Air Communications Equipment within the operations complex, increased its operations establishment to 4 F/Ls and 8 F/Os from 1 F/L and 5 F/Os and began reporting to Frederiction Sector (HQ at St. Margarets). Another change in the system occurred later, when we were reassigned to the Operational Control of Bangor, NORAD Sector with its headquarters at Bangor, Maine. This change in reporting agency obviously did not change the Squadron’s operational capabilities for in an Air Defence Headquarters’ Tactical Evaluation held in October 1962 our unit was assessed as being the most highly qualified Control Center in Air Defence Command.
The Squadron had placed itself in the forefront of the Command and Control System in use at that time and appropriately Air Defence Command Headquarters (St. Hubert’s, Quebec) notified 211 AC&W Squadron in July 1962 that the final painting of the Squadron crest was being prepared, which signaled the end of three years work in producing a suitable unit emblem.
A number of major construction projects were let and completed during this era and these were strongly influenced by the station’s changing role from that of an early warning station to that of aircraft control. It became necessary to construct a workshop for the Supply Section’s repair craftsmen as the increase in furniture inventory of the station made the old Supply Section repair area inadequate. The Supply Quonset was altered to provide the necessary space in late 1958, and shortly thereafter a fire in the old shop caused approximately $2,000 in damage to the building. Fortunately, all furniture repair equipment had already been moved to its new location, and none of it was lost. Most of this same equipment has since been set aside for the Wood Hobby Shop which is presently being mounted on the station.
During August 1958, construction began on 40 garages which were later to be provided (rent free), to the "basementless" Steelox PMQs as storage areas. DCL was tasked during the same year, to let contracts for the construction of 26 new three-bedroom Steelox PMQs and for a sewage processing plant. Construction was started on a new road from the station to the airport and was completed before the end of 1959.
During this era a few incidents occurred which delayed the construction or installation of the new equipment. In May 1959, a contractor severed the main power lines while working on expanding the power plant. Eleven days later this temporarily repaired power line was severed again, and was again repaired, this time permanently.
In January 1960, construction of the new station chapel was started. It should be noted here that all religious services over the previous seven years had been held in schools. Just before Christmas of 1960, representatives of Globe Furniture Company of Waterloo Ontario completed installation of the furniture in the chapel and the RCs held Midnight Mass for the first time in the chapel that year. The Protestant Chapel was dedicated in May 1961 by G/C Light with W/C Rodger, Command Chaplain (P) officiating.
Speaking of expansion, the concept of renovating one’s Mess oneself, was in full swing in the Sgts. And WOs’ Mess. The Sr. NCOs were in the process of self-expanding their mess when a death occurred to one of their members - their mascot. It appears that WO "Shorty" Gould from the CE Section had an old dog which used to come in with him to the Mess every Friday and drink B&W Scotch, and eat cheese, while the TGIF was underway. Of course, in no time at all, the dog became not only an alcoholic, but the mess mascot.
When the day for pouring the new cement floor for the Mess (which is now the Social Center) arrived, the poor dog died. With full reverence for their mascot, it was decided that a burial with the highest honors was required, so they placed the dog in a steel box into which was placed a 40 oz. Bottle of B&W Scotch, and a pound of cheese. They then closed the lid, buried the "coffin" in the ground, and then laid the cement floor over the burial ground.
Of course, the Sr. NCOs Mess was not the only one to be renovated during this period. The Airmen’s Club (which was located in what is now part of the CE complex) was renovated in February 1961, and the official ribbon cutting ceremony saw about 80 people in attendance. The Corporals had their own Mess during these early years in the lower floor of a two-storey building just outside the Ops Compound and across from the Power Plant. The top floor of this structure also housed the Station Social Center, thus in April 1961, when the new Cpls. Club was built (the present Jr. Ranks Club) the Social Centre/Cpls. Club was torn down. It’s not known exactly where the Social Centre was located after this.
During the early sixties, the world political atmosphere brought pressure to bear in support of expanding the defensive radar system in use in Canada and the US. Due to its strategic location, our squadron was one of the first to have its radar system upgraded in preparation for the new NORAD Semi-Automatic Control Centre system which was then only in its early stages of conception. This major expansion of our squadron included: the construction of new towers for the installation of a new search radar, known as the FPS-27 and a new height-finder radar, the FPS-26; moving the FPS-6 height finder; relocating the Ground to Air Transmit and Receive Site; constructing the new Semi-Automated Ground Environment Annex; and the expansion of present power plant to support the increased electric power demand of these new equipments and complexes.
The excavation for the expanded power plant was started in August 1961. The five new 650 KW diesel generators were unloaded at the Sept-Iles docks from the hold of the "Carrigan Head", and transported by flatbed to the station in November 1961. By June 1962, Argo Construction Company had two diesels generating power, and the others were operational before the end of the year.
In August 1961, the pilings for the search radars were driven, and by the end of the year approximately 50% of the construction for those towers was completed. Construction of both the SAGE Annex and the GATR Site was moving ahead at a slightly slower pace but by the end of October 1962 they were completed.
As had been stated earlier, this upgrading of the site was being conducted in preparation for the day when automatic radar information forwarding to a central aircraft control centre (Bangor, Maine) became a reality. The automatic radar data processing equipment, known as the FPS-T2 arrived on the unit in late November 1962, but had not been integrated with the rest of the "new" equipment by the end of this period.
This detail was obtained from Section Three of the 1953-1978 Moisie Anniversary - 25 Years of Service Book. A copy of the 1953-1978 Moisie book was loaned to us by Deanna Gilbert and the material has been typed for use on the Pinetree Line web site in December 1998.