A New Brunswick-born sailor has taken command of one of Canada’s coastal defense vessels named after a town in his home province.
Lieutenant-Commander Russel Hodgson is now in command of HMCS Moncton, a vessel he remembers being commissioned at Point-du-Chêne, N.B. in 1998.
“I was there, I can remember it. That experience planted the seed of me joining the Navy,” he said. “The idea of a young fellow that came from a small farming community, growing up and becoming the Commanding Officer of my town’s namesake city ship is pretty amazing. It’s just like being at home.”
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Hodgson joined the Royal Canadian Navy in 2002 and has served overseas and taken part in multiple NATO missions.
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HMCS Moncton was the ninth of 12 Kingston Class Defence Vessels built in the late 1990’s.
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The boats are designed to conduct coastal patrols, perform minesweeping, search and rescue duties and law enforcement.
According to the Canadian Government, the boat is crewed almost entirely by naval reservists.
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