12 Wing - General

12 Wing Badge High resolution

Origin of the Name
What's in a name? Following the Royal Navy tradition of naming air stations after sea birds, Shearwater is named for the bird which skims or shears the water. The name also commemorates the association between Canada and HMS Shearwater, a British sloop that served in Canadian waters early in the twentieth century.

12 Wing Commander
Colonel Alan Blair

Climate
Shearwater's proximity to the ocean makes it an ideal location from which to support Canada's navy. However, it also places the airport squarely in the heart of the maritime climate. Fog is a common summer threat to Shearwater's runways. Often visible offshore, the fog bank rolls in and out depending on changes in wind direction. The five day forecast for Shearwater is available from Environment Canada.

Location

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12 Wing is unique since not all of its helicopter squadrons are located at Shearwater, Nova Scotia. The home of 12 Wing and the majority of the units are in Shearwater, situated on approximately 640 hectares of land on the East side of Halifax harbour just south of the city of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

One of the Wing's squadrons is also located on the West coast at Patricia Bay, 25 kilometres north of Victoria, British Columbia. See also map of Halifax Regional Municipality and map of 12 Wing Shearwater.

Trident
You can find out the latest news from 12 Wing by visiting The Trident, newspaper of Maritime Forces Atlantic.