Defence Research Establishment Suffield
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The Defence Research Establishment Suffield was the name of the military research facility located {{convert|5|km|abbr=on}} north of Suffield, Alberta, from 1967 to its renaming to DRDC Suffield in 2000.
History
After being renamed from the Suffield Experimental Station in July 1967, the Defence Research Establishment Suffield (DRES) continued to operate under the Defence Research Board. On August 3, 1971, Agriculture Minister H.A. (Bud) Olson announce "that a Canadian Forces Base will be established on the military reservation of the Defence Research Establishment at Suffield, near Medicine Hat" where more than 6,000 British troops will train between May and November 1972."UK Units Will Train In Alta",Winnipeg Free Press, page 26, 3 August 1971 A few weeks later, on August 25, 1971, the Canadian Government ratified a ten-year agreement[https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/written-answers/1971/aug/03/overseas-training-areas#S5CV0822P0_19710803_CWA_273 Overseas Training Areas] British Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) - House of Commons, 3 Aug 1971 with the British Government that allowed the United Kingdom Forces to use the Military Training Area (MTA) on the Suffield Block. The MTA occupies the northern three quarters of the military reserve and the remaining southern area was named the Experimental Proving Grounds (EPG).
On December 1, 1971, the Canadian Forces Base Suffield (CFB Suffield) was officially created and allocated to Mobile Command.[http://www.army.gc.ca/lfwa/Documents/Backgrounders/BG-Suffield.PDF Backgrounder - Canadian Forces Base Suffield]{{dead link|date=December 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} 162 staff members, over 90 buildings, over 80 vehicles, and the Crown Village of Ralston were transferred from DRES to CFB Suffield and CFB Suffield was co-located with the Research Establishment."Interim Memorandum of Agreement Between the Chief of the Defence Staff and the Chairman, Defence Research Board Relating to (A) the Establishment of the Canadian Forces Base, Suffield (B) the Provision of Services to the Defence Research Establishment Suffield and (C) the Provisions of Services to the Canadian Forces Base, Suffield", signed 27 October 1971
In 1974, the Defence Research Board evolved into the Research and Development Branch which was administered under the [https://web.archive.org/web/20080526153517/http://www.forces.gc.ca/admmat/ Assistant Deputy Minister Materiel] of the [http://www.forces.gc.ca/ Canadian Department of National Defence]. Another reorganization followed on April 1, 2000 when the Research and Development Branch was placed under the Assistant Deputy Minister Science & Technology and renamed to Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC).
| class="wikitable" border="1" |
| Chief DRES
! Tenure |
|---|
| Mr. E.H. Bobyn
| September 1964"Edward Bobyn is director of research establishment", The Ukrainian Weekly, 7 October 1972 To 1968 |
| Dr. B.J. Perry
| 1968 to June 2, 1971"DRES director dies in hospital", The Medicine Hat News, 2 June 1971 |
| C.R. Iverson
| June 11, 1971"Suffield director appointed", The Medicine Hat News, 11 June 1971 to ? |
| R.M. Hegge{{Cite web |url=http://www.archivescanada.ca/ |title=Canadian Archival Information Network |access-date=2009-05-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090318060511/http://www.archivescanada.ca/ |archive-date=2009-03-18 |url-status=dead }}
| ? to 1979 |
| Dr. C.H. Baker |
| Dr. J.C. Moldon
| Aug 1990 to ? |
Large events
Large chemical training events
- Exercise Vacuum was undertaken in the fall of 1968 with the objective "To test, under realistic battle conditions, new defensive doctrine, training agents, clothing and equipment designed as a result of shortcomings brought out in previous trials{{nbsp}}..."Canada. Department of National Defence, "EX VACUUM Visitors Brochure," DRDC Suffield Record #2003-4266 (1968) Almost 2000 men participated in Exercise Vacuum, which was held on the Suffield Block. Simulants (mainly based on the tear gas CS) were used in the experimental phase of Exercise Vacuum.C.H. Laforce, "The Use of Human Subjects in Chemical Warfare Agent Experiments: An Ethical Perspective", Canadian Forces College, May 2006
Large explosive events
- Distant Plain 6 was a 100-ton detonation (spherical form) in 1967G.H.S. Jones, Crater and Ejecta Study, Defence Research Establishment Suffield, 1970
- The Prairie Flat 500-ton detonation (spherical form) on 9 August 1968 at the Watching Hill test site formed a 64-meter diameter craterNeville J. Price, Major impacts and plate tectonics, University College London, 2000
- The Dial Pack 500-ton detonationG.H.S. Jones, Complex Craters in Alluvium, Defence Research Board, 1977 on 23 July 1970.
References
External links
- [http://www.drdc-rddc.gc.ca Official DRDC Website]
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Category:Military research installations of Canada