
The CT-155 Hawk aircraft (Photo via 15 Wing Imaging)
The 419 Squadron, which has Freedom of the City of Kamloops, will officially be stood down in a ceremony at 4 Wing Cold Lake on Friday, March 8.
Commanding Officer LCol Ryan Kean says it comes as the Royal Canadian Air Force prepares to transition its frontline fighter from the CF18 to the F35.
“We’ve reached the end of contract support for the CT-155 Hawk so with that we’ll cease our maintenance support for the aircraft,” Kean told Radio NL.
“It’s a natural breaking point that allows us bridge ourselves into the future fighter program with Canada’s F-35, and also feature fighter lead-in training that we’ll be getting into in the future.”
Friday’s ceremony will be overseen by Major-General Iain Huddleston, the Commanding Officer of 1 Canadian Air Division, the operational headquarters of the Royal Canadian Air Force.
“It’ll be a very much like a change of command of the squadron but what will happen is we’ll take the squadron’s standard, our squadron’ colours [which] I will pass to MGen Huddleston, and he’ll pass them to the 4 Wing Commander,” Kean said.
“4 Wing is taking charge of our colours while we are on this cease of operations and taking case of those four us in preparation for when 419 does begin operations.”
Kean, whose role as Commanding Officer will end after Friday’s ceremonies, says the 419 Squadron is expected to be reactivated in 2030 with new still to be determined aircraft.
“That project is being handled out of Ottawa and its still in the works right now, and there is no determination exactly what aircraft it’ll be,” Kean said. “It’ll definitely be a next generation trainer that will help train our future pilots, getting ready for the F35.”
The 419 Squadron, which has Freedom of the City of #Kamloops, will officially be stood down on March 8.
It is expected to be reactivated “in the early 2030s.” https://t.co/6JahqniCbL
— Victor Mario Kaisar (@supermario_47) March 6, 2024
It’s not the first time the 419 Squadron – which was formed in 1941 with Kamloops native John (Moose) Fulton as the first Commanding Officer – is being stood down. It was disbanded in 1945 after World War II, and reformed as the 419 All-Weather Fighter Squadron in 1955 until it was disbanded again in 1962.
The unit was reformed at CFB Cold Lake in 1975 as the 419 Tactical Fighter Training Squadron, and disbanded in 1995 when the CF-5s were retired. The current iteration of the squadron has been active since 2000.
“I wouldn’t say its routine, but it does happen where a squadron is stood down and then does reactivate either with a different mandate or a different mission,” Kean said, noting the CT-155 aircraft will be used to train new Air Force technicians at 16 Wing Borden in Ontario.
419 Squadron grateful for relationship with Kamloops
Kean also says the 419 Squadron is grateful for the relationship it has with Kamloops, one that he hopes will continue even while they are on hiatus.
“Nobody can say what the future has in store at this point, but what we do definitely want to see is the relationship maintained with the City of Kamloops,” Kean said. “That is something that during my time as the Commanding Officer and during my previous time as an instructor that I’ve always appreciated. That relationship between Kamloops and 419 Squadron and truthfully with the RCAF is incredible.”
“Kamloops is truly like a second home when we do get to go there. We are always welcomed very warmly, and I know for myself that I will be back.”