CHAPTER SIX

THE COLD WAR PERIOD AND UNITED NATIONS SERVICE
1946 - 1989

In October 1961 the RCEME Memorial Gate at Camp Barriefield, Kingston, Ontario was dedicated to those who died in the service of Canada. General A.G.L. McNaughton, then Colonel Commandant of RCEME, officiated at the ceremony. This first structure was funded with $9,000 in donations by all ranks, regular and militia, and friends of the Corps. In 1968, the 24th birthday the extensions were added. In 1989 the Sherman tank carrying a "LAD" number appeared and in 1992 a 25 pounder howitzer was added. This gate is, like the Vimy War Memorial (on right), a designated memorial and the area around it is a designated military "attention area". Military personnel passing through this "McNaughton Gate" pay respects to the RCEME Memorial Gate.

On 4 December 1961 authority was requested by the Commandant RCSofS to Headquarters, Eastern Ontario Area to create an officially sanctioned Museum - RCSS/160-1 4 Dec 61 (No copy held).

In March 1961 NRS Inuvik became operational assuming the duties previously done by NRS Aklavik. In 1961 the first soldier arrived (a RCEME vehicle technician) and by 1969 it was an integrated station.

On 18 December 1961 authority was granted to establish the ROYAL CANADIAN CORPS OF SIGNALS MUSEUM at the RCSofS - EO 5115-B5/2(DAAG) 18 Dec 61.

In 1962 over $30,000 was raised for construction of a fitting Signals War Memorial. In June 1962 Her Royal Highness, Mary, The Princess Royal visited Kingston for the second time and participated in the sod turning ceremony.

On 21 September 1962 the United Nations Temporary Executive Authority in West New Guinea (West Irian) - UNTEA was authorized to maintain peace and security in the region disputed by Indonesia and the Netherlands. UNTEA ceased operations 20 April 1963.

On 6 October 1962 the Royal Canadian Signals War Memorial was unveiled by His Excellency Major General Georges P. Vanier, DSO MC, CD, PC, Governor General of Canada.

In 1962 the NORTHAG Signal Troop was formed and flown to Germany to serve Northern Army Group Headquarters.

In 1962 the "History of the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals 1903 - 1961" was published after 18 years of preparation.

In 1963 the Royal Canadian Signals Museum in Kingston opened to the public.

In 1963 NRS Bermuda became operational and on 1 April 1964 it was designated a permanent station.

In April 1963 the Defence Research Telecommunications Establishment at Shirley Bay began to provide computer high frequency (HF) predictions using an IBM 705 computer. This service was discontinued in March 1967 due to computer limitations and increased demand.

UNTEA ceased operations in New Guinea on 20 April 1963.

On 11 June 1963 The United Nations Yeman Observer Mission - UNYOM was authorized to implement the disengagement between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Republic (Egypt). UNYOM ceased operations on 4 September 1964.

On 15 August 1963 General Order 769 redesignated 1 Signal Unit as "1st Canadian Signal Regiment" (the order was actually dated 30 March 1964 but was effective from 15 August 1963).

On 22 September 1963 the RCSIGS "Book of Remembrance" was dedicated and placed on display in the Foyer of the Forde Building, Kingston. It was executed as a gift to the Corps by Brigadier E.D. Babcock, MBE, CD.

In 1964 Bill C-90 was approved by the Parliament of Canada. This authorized the integration of the Canadian Forces. By 1965 an integrated Canadian Forces Headquarters was in place and integrated services were becoming common although officially integration did not occur until 1968.

In January 1964 the western half of Mid Canada Line closed.

In 1964 Canadian soldiers went to Cyprus as part of the United Nations Force In Cyprus (UNFICYP). The force was authorized on 4 March 1964 to assist in the maintenance of peace and restoration of law and order in Cyprus. Canadian troops remained in place during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974. In addition to serving with Canadian units involved in the operation signalmen also served in 644 Signal Troop, Royal Corps of Signals, later redesignated 254 (UNFICYP) Signal Squadron, until 17 December 1992. The last, and 59th, Canadian rotation ended on 15 June 1993 when the 2nd Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery turned over its responsibilities and departed.

By March 1964 the RCAF had a strength of over 51,000 of whom 1,200 were airwomen, many serving in the Telecommunications Branch.

On 22 June 1964 STRAD (Signal Transmit Receive And Distribution) went operational at Carp with its TARE (Telegraph Auto- matic Relay Equipment). This was the first automated message system in the Canadian Forces. It closed 17 years and 61 million messages later when SAMSON went operational.

On 30 June 1964 ONUC forces in the Congo ceased operations.

UNYOM ceased operations in Yeman on 4 September 1964.

In October 1964 Capt John D.B. Kent, Sgt J.J. Doran and Sgt Ron Halal made up the RCSIGS component of a 30 man training and advisory team which had been sent to Tanzania to assist that country's army. Tanzanian soldiers also trained at the RCSofS.

On 15 March 1965 Her Royal Highness, Mary, the Princess Royal, Colonel in Chief died.

In April 1965 the eastern half of Mid Canada Line closed. This completed closure of the line, considered not cost effective.

Effective 1 April 1965, strategic communications of all elements were fully integrated as the Canadian Forces Communications System (CFCS), later a command in its own right.

On 14 May 1965 the Mission of the Representative of the Secretary General in the Dominican Republic - DOMREP was authorized to observe the situation and report on breaches to the cease fire following a civil war. DOMREP ceased operations on 22 October 1966.

On 12 August 1965 the Museum requested authority to operate a Kit Shop - RCSS/1615-2 12 Aug 65 (no copy held). On 24 September 1965 the Museum was authorized to operate a Kit Shop - EO1615-1 (ADM) 24 Sep 65.

On 20 September 1965 the United Nations India-Pakistan Observer Mission - UNIPOM was authorized to supervise a cease fire along the India-Pakistan border, except for Jammu and Kashmir which were covered by UNMOGIP. UNIPOM ceased operations 22 March 1966.

In 1965 1 Line Troop, a unit in its own right since 1952, became an integral part of 1 Canadian Signal Regiment, where it became Heavy Line Troop, part of 2 Squadron.

By mid 1966 strategic communications units had been reorganized on a regional basis and names changed from former single service designations to 700 series numbered communications squadrons in which the first two numbers designated which communication group headquarters the unit reported to, for example: NS/PEI Signal Squadron became 720 Communication Squadron in Debert and 726 Communication Squadron in Halifax, both answering to 72 Communication Group in Halifax. Most units had small detachments serving bases and stations within their areas of responsibility.

UNIPOM ceased operations along the India-Pakistan border on 22 March 1966.

In April 1966 base responsibilities for Vimy Barracks were transferred from the RCSofS to the newly formed Canadian Forces Base Kingston.

DOMREP ceased operations in the Dominican Republic on 22 October 1966.

In 1967 Project Mercury 67 was a commemorative message sent nationwide involving all the historic communications devices. Conceived by 2 Signal Squadron, Petawawa with the aid of Canadian Forces Communication System, the message began on 27 June at the Provincial Parliament Buildings in Victoria BC where Major General G.R. Pearkes, Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia, initiated the message which went by laser beam to the Fleet Mail Room in CFB Esquimalt; then by mail to 741 Communication Squadron, Vancouver; by teletype to 733 Communication Squadron, Winnipeg; through 18 field radio detachments to CFB Petawawa; then by L-19 light aircraft of 4 Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery which dropped the message to a Ottawa River canoe party who took it to Parliament Hill, Ottawa; by telephone to CFB St Hubert; by B-70 radio relay, TA-43/PT telephone, Fullerphone, dispatch riders using jeep, motorcycle, ferry and horse to Bedford NS; by heliograph, Lucas lamp and signal flags to Halifax Citadel; by submarine cable to St John's where semaphore and Lucas lamp passed the message to a runner who finally carried it to the Honorable Fabien O'Dea, Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland, who was waiting on Signal Hill, its final destination, on the morning of 1 July. The reply was sent via CFCC back to Victoria in less than one day.

In 1967 the air head support base for CFS Alert was changed from CFB Edmonton to CFB Rockcliffe (and later to Uplands when the aircraft no longer used Rockcliffe).

In 1967 a new RCSIGS Motorcycle Display Team, commanded by Captain J.E. Burman, toured the country and signalmen were involved in display caravans nationwide. This was part of Canada's centennial birthday celebrations.

In March 1967 the Radio and Physics lab at the Defence Research Telecommunications Establishment at Shirley Bay provided Canadian Forces Communications System Headquarters with a computer program to predict high frequency one hop F2 layer mode predictions for the 4000 - 6800 kilometre range.

In May 1967 the first United Nations Emergency Force - UNEF I, originally authorized in 1956 to supervise a cessation of hostilities in Egypt following the 1956 War, was ordered by Egypt to depart the disputed area but was caught in situ and did not complete its withdrawal until the fighting had ended. On 5 June 1967 war again broke out in the Middle East. On 17 June 1967 56 Canadian Signal Squadron, part of the United Nations Emergency Force Egypt - UNEF, ceased operations and withdrew from Egypt in the face of the renewed fighting, the Six Day War, between Israel and its Arab neighbors.

On 4 July 1967 approval was given to mount a bronze RCSIGS badge above the front entrance to the Forde Building in Kingston. The technical maintenance office (TMO) work order was initiated on 14 July 1967 by Captain F.W. Pratt and the badge was installed shortly thereafter. This badge replaced previous wooden badges which had been mounted on the building since the school opened in 1937.

In 19 December 1967 CFS Mill Cove was commissioned for naval ship to shore communications and as a strategic receiver site. It replaced NRS Albro Lake, in service since 1941.

In 1968 NRS Gander became CFS Gander.

In March 1968 two mobile satellite terminals were delivered to 1st Canadian Signal Regiment, Kingston as part of the experimental NATO TACSATCOM System (joining the semi-mobile terminal and fixed terminal based at Shirley Bay and purchased the previous year). Total costs about $300,000 for hardware.

On 8 May 1968 2 Airborne Signal Troop (of 2 Signal Squadron, Petawawa) participated with other units in a parachute drop at Camp Petawawa Ontario. Due to a wind shift a number of the parachutists landed in the adjacent Ottawa River rather than on the designated landing zone. While many were saved others who had landed in the water were drowned before rescue was possible. Lost were:
 

On 12 May 1968 the Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers War Memorial, the main gate to McNaughton Barracks, Kingston, was re-dedicated by Colonel A.L. MacLean as part of the ceremonies marking the 24th anniversary of RCEME. The gates had been originally conceived as part of the 1950 development plan for Camp Barriefield and originally constructed in 1961.

In September 1968 the Observer Team to Nigeria - OTN was authorized, outside the auspices of the United Nations, to observe the Nigerian Armed Forces to determine if they were complying with their own code of conduct and to investigate charges that the military was guilty of genocide. OTN ceased operations in 1970.

1 October 1968 - integration of the Canadian Forces. RCSIGS personnel, RCEME radio and radar technicians, RCAF Technical Telecommunications personnel and RCN radiomen special were grouped together to form the new Communications and Electronics Branch. All former single element corps and branches ceased to exist. The Royal Canadian School of Signals in Vimy Barracks amalgamated with the Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers School in McNaughton Barracks to become Canadian Forces School of Communications and Land Ordnance Engineering (CFSCLOE). The new school was an integral unit of CFB Kingston assigned to the then Training Command. Squadrons were redesignated Companies and were designated by letter rather than by the former numbers.

On 1 October 1968 Brigadier McKee relinquished his appointment as Honorary Colonel Commandant of RCCS and Lieutenant-General F.S. Clark, CBE became Colonel Commandant of the new Communications and Electronics Branch.

At the same time the RCCS Band was amalgamated with the Royal Canadian Dragoons Band and other band elements to form the Canadian Forces Vimy Band which was moved to Ottawa.

In April 1969 the Ecole technique des Forces Canadiennes (ETFC) (Canadian Forces Technical School) was formed at Saint-Jean Quebec to do basic French language technical training. English language and franco-assist training were still taught at Kingston.

In 1970 CFSCLOE became Canadian Forces School of Communications and Electronics Engineering (CFSCEE) with transfer of air communications, radar and basic electronics training from 1 Radar and Communications School at CFB Clinton and relocation from Kingston of land ordnance engineering (LORE) training to Borden. The move of LORE to Borden ended a training association with Kingston which had gone on since 1939 and had seen 40,000 tradesmen of the RCOC, RCOC(E), CEME, RCEME and finally LORE trained in Camp Barriefield, later McNaughton Barracks. For the RCEME Association however, Kingston remains a RCEME focal point and the home for RCEME reunions and ceremonies.

On 1 September 1970 the Heavy Line Troop, 1 Canadian Signal Regiment, reverted to command of Canadian Forces Communication Command as a unit and was again designated 1 Line Troop.

In October 1970 1 Canadian Signal Regiment deployed to Montreal as part of OPERATION ESSAY. This deployment initially involved an aid to civil power operation in support of the Government of the Province of Quebec where terrorist acts by Quebec separatists of the Front de Liberation de Quebec, or FLQ, created what later became known as the "October Crisis". When the War Measures Act was invoked this operation and other related operations came under federal government auspices. Other military units deployed to Ottawa and several locations in Quebec and security within Canadian Forces establishments was increased. The Regiment remained in Montreal until late 4 January 1991.

On 1 October 1970 4 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group relocated from Westphalia in Northern Germany to Lahr and Baden in the south. This involved 11 trains, each of 20 flatbed cars, loaded with tracked vehicles and a road party of some 500 wheeled vehicles. With this move the Canadian contingents in Germany were all located in the same area. 4CMBG moved from the British Army On The Rhine (BAOR) to Central Army Group (CENTAG).

On 27 August 1971 an Administrative Order was published to authorize establishment of the Communications and Electronics Branch (C&E). The Branch had been in the formative stage since 1968 however at this point it officially became a Branch.

In 1970 the Canadian Forces Vimy Band was renamed the Air Transport Command Band. this temporarily ended the band's long association with the C & E Family.

In 1971 the support base for CFS Alert was changed from CFB Uplands to CFB Trenton. Relocation of the C-130 Hercules squadron to Trenton was responsible for this change.

In December 1971 HMCS Gloucester closed and communicator research training was transferred to Kingston to become E Coy of CFSCE.

In September 1971 CFB Clinton closed. 

On 10 April 1972 the C&E cap badge was approved. This badge was unique in that this badge differed from the approved branch badge. The cap badge has a light blue background as opposed to dark blue while the Mercury figure is of white metal rather than yellow of the Branch badge.

On 10 November 1972 the newly renovated CFB Kingston Officers' Mess at Vimy Barracks, Kingston, was officially reopened after eleven months of renovations.

In 1973 terminology for Canadian brigades was changed from "brigade" to "brigade group".

In January 1973 the International Commission for Control and Supervision South Vietnam - ICCS was authorized to monitor the cease fire in South Vietnam, supervise the exchange of prisoners and to ensure no build up of military equipment. This was not a United Nations operation. The Chief Signal Officer was Lieutenant-Colonel J.A.P. Thomson. After six months service Canada withdrew in frustration in July 1973.

In February 1973 the Statement of Requirements for SAMSON (Strategic Automated Message Switching Operational Network) was issued.

On 24 March 1973 Brigadier-General J.B. Clement replaced Lieutenant-General Clark as Colonel Commandant.