Hi all,
In this thread I will be posting various works from my upcoming Canadian Forces AU. Drawings will include SB and FD scale. Right now drawings will appear in no particular order but hopefully as things progress I'll sort everything out. I was reading through thegrumpykestrel's excellent Westralia AU recently and I was inspired by a post wherein he illustrated the aviation component of the Royal Westralian Navy. I've tried to do the same thing here - note that in both this AU and the real world, all maritime air assets are operated by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) since the unification of the Canadian Forces (CF) in 1968.
The RCAF owns the aircraft and provides the pilots, however, operational control of the Maritime Air Group is exercised by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). The various assets of the RCAF are split into eight groups - Air Reserve Group, Air Training Group, Air Transport Group, Fighter Group, Maritime Air Group, Search and Rescue Group, Surveillance and Response Group, and Tactical Air Group; with groups being further divided into wings, and wings into squadrons.
![[ img ]](https://i.imgur.com/4RksEgZ.png)
The RCAF's Maritime Air Group is made up of eight squadrons and two flights, based out of CFB Shearwater (maritime helicopters), and CFB Greenwood (fixed-wing maritime patrol) on the East Coast; and CFB Comox (fixed-wing maritime patrol) and Patricia Bay Heliport/Victoria Int'l Airport (maritime helicopters) on the West Coast. The CH-148 Cyclone, derived from the Sikorsky S-92, is the RCAF's latest anti-submarine helicopter, replacing the venerable CH-124 Sea King. Cyclones operate from Halifax - class Frigates, Athabaskan - class Destroyers (a derivative of the Alvaro de Bazan/Hobart - class, coming soon), amphibious warfare vessels, and AORs. The CH-429 Global Ranger is used primarily on the Harry DeWolf - class Arctic Offshore Patrol Vessels as well as other auxiliaries, and also for pilot training and currency.
The latest acquisition for Maritime Air Group is the Boeing P-8A Poseidon, designated CP-180A in Canadian Service. Introduced by 415 Squadron, no fewer than 18 Poseidons will replace the CP-140 Aurora from 2020-onward. The MQ-4C Triton, designated CU-174 in Canadian service, is another recent addition. Long range, high cruising altitude, and advanced sensors make the CU-174 a platform well suited for patrolling Canada's extensive coastlines, especially the arctic region.
My next project for this AU will be completing each of the various groups of the RCAF, as well as rendering each of the respective aircraft into FD scale. Thanks for reading, cheers!
Inspiration and patience 