The Airbus CC-295 Kingfisher takes on SAR alert at Comox
May 2, 2025
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) retired its last CC-115 Buffalo aircraft from operational service with No.442 Squadron, leaving something of a capability gap in Canada’s Search and Rescue capability. Delays in the certification of the replacement CC-295 saw two SAR-equipped C-130H Hercules being deployed from Greenwood (Nova Scotia), Trenton (Ontario), or Winnipeg (Manitoba) to Comox to provide interim SAR coverage for the West Coast and Rocky Mountains. These returned to their home bases in January.
Meanwhile, the introduction of the CC-295 into Canadian service was overseen by No.418 Squadron at Comox.
The CC-295 Kingfisher officially became the fixed-wing SAR response aircraft at No.442 Squadron, starting on 1 May 2025, ready to respond on a 24/7 basis, 365 days a year.
Canada ordered sixteen CC-295 Kingfishers from Airbus, and ten of these have now been delivered, (plus a ground instructional airframe, serial 295517). The CC-295 is expected to gradually take over SAR duties at Greenwood, Trenton, and Winnipeg, replacing the last SAR-roled C-130H Hercules.
