Protecteur-class auxiliary vessel

The Protecteur class (formerly known as the Queenston class) of naval auxiliaries for the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) began as the Joint Support Ship Project, a Government of Canada procurement project for the RCN that is part of the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy. It will see the RCN acquire two multi-role vessels to replace the earlier Protecteur-class auxiliary oiler replenishment vessels.

This article is about the replenishment ships under construction. For the Cold War tankers, see Protecteur-class replenishment oiler.

Class overview
NameProtecteur class
BuildersSeaspan ULC
Operators Royal Canadian Navy
Preceded byProtecteur class
CostCA$2.6 billion (2015 estimate);$4.1bn (2020 estimate)
Planned2
Building2
General characteristics
TypeJoint support ship
Displacement20,240 t (19,920 long tons)
Length173.7 m (569 ft 11 in)
Beam24 m (78 ft 9 in)
Height17.5 m (57 ft 5 in)
Draught7.4 m (24 ft 3 in)
Propulsion
  • 2 × MAN 12V32/44CR propulsion engines
    • 2 × propulsion shafts
  • 1 × bow thruster
  • 4 × MAN diesel generators
Speed20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Range10,895 nmi (20,178 km; 12,538 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Boats & landing
craft carried		2 × Ship-to-Shore Connector pontoon systems
Complement
  • 199 Core crew
  • 239 with 2 x Air detachments
Sensors and
processing systems
  • Command & control
    • Lockheed Martin Canada CMS 330 Combat System
    • OSI Maritime Systems Integrated Navigation and Tactical System (INTS)
    • Rhode & Schwartz Communications Systems
  • Surveillance & weapon sensors
Armament
Aircraft carried
Aviation facilitiesHangar and flight deck capable of holding Chinook size helicopters

The project has suffered from considerable delays. Originally announced in 2004, a contract for the construction of these ships was planned to be signed in 2009, with the first vessel available for operational service in 2012. In 2010, the federal government incorporated the project into the National Shipbuilding Strategy.

On 2 June 2013, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems Canada's Berlin-class replenishment ship was selected. The Canadian vessels will be a variant of the Berlin class, built at Seaspan's yard in North Vancouver, British Columbia.

Initial construction work began in 2018, but a formal contract for the construction of both ships was only signed in June 2020.

In order to speed construction of the Protecteur-class naval auxiliaries, the delivery of the first of the new class of polar icebreakers, the CCGS John G. Diefenbaker, will be delayed until at least 2030.

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