Canada to Spend C$ 500 Million on CFB Trenton

Canada to Spend C$ 500 Million on CFB Trenton

(NSI News Source Info) September 10, 2008: CFB Trenton, located in the province of Ontario about 2 hours drive away from Toronto, is one of the Canadian Forces’ busiest bases. It is the backbone of Canada’s transport fleet, housing Canada’s new C-17 fleet along with C-130 Hercules transports, Airbus A310 Polaris (CC-150) transports/refuelers, and Challenger (CC-144) VIP business jets. When Canada’s new C-130J Hercules transports arrive, they, too will be based at CFB Trenton. Accommodating that level of activity and restoring Trenton’s flightline over the next 5 years will require the rebuilding and construction of new taxiways, ramps and aprons, as well as several new maintenance hangars. All of these activities are included within the C$ 500 million (about $470 million) budget, announced by the Minister for Defence on Sept 5/08. So, too, is relocation of Canada’s JTF2 special forces to Trenton. JTF2 has seen long-standing service in the “commando olympics” of Afghanistan, and is also Canada’s key unit for potential domestic anti-terrorism operations like hostage rescues. The unit is growing in size, and has begun to outgrow its current location at Dwyer Hill Training Centre near Ottawa. Moving to CFB Trenton keeps the unit close to its required transports for fast deployments, and CFB Trenton already hosts the Canadian Forces Land Advanced Warfare Centre so it was a natural choice. DND has been working with the Department of Public Works and Government Services to purchase parcels of land bordering the base, and associated buildings, training centers, and other infrastructure will also be required.