History of St Sylvestre AS, QC, CN

RCAF St. Sylvestre, a Group II radar site (C-6) was originally called RCAF Station Ste. Marie. It was located in the County of Lotbinere southwest of the town of Ste. Marie, and 25 miles south of the provincial capital, Quebec City. Construction of the station began in 1952 and an advance party arrived on 30 September 1953 to open up 13 AC&W Squadron. On 13 February 1954, 13 AC&W Squadron came into being as an early warning unit. The following month saw the Combined Officers and Senior NCO's Mess officially opened, with official attendance by many local dignitaries and VIPs, including the Honorable Hughes Lapointe, Minister of Veterans Affairs. In August 1955, the station changed its name to RCAF Station St. Sylvestre which was the name of the closest community, three miles to the northeast. The squadron operated as a Ground Control Intercept unit, began limited operations in July 1955 (callsign Eaglebeak) and then became fully operational on a 24 hour basis in September 1955. The squadron was originally controlled by and reported to No. 1 Air Defence Control Centre, Lac St. Denis.

A detachment of No. 1 Radar and Communications School (R&CS), RCAF Station Clinton formed in May 1954 and operated until the following May at which time it was disbanded. This detachment formed a school to teach Radar Technicians the AN/FPS-6B radar. In September 1955, 13 AC&W Squadron assumed a full operational role. Construction of the SAGE buildings commenced in September 1961. In June 1961, the RCAF assumed full financial responsibility for the station under the Triangular Agreement, and by the following May the SAGE annex and GATR site were completed. The squadron came under the Bangor Sector in September 1962. At 1100 hours on 1 October 1963, the station commenced SAGE operations and reported to the Ottawa NORAD Sector. The personnel were hardly used to the new set-up when they received word of impending closure. The unit became RCAF Station St. Sylvestre Rear Party on 31 March 1964 and the next day antennas of the FPS-6B and the FPS-20 began to be dismantled. Five days later USAF technicians began to tear down the radomes.

The squadron was officially disbanded on 1 April 1964 with the general downsizing of AC&W Squadrons caused by the re-alignment of the NORAD system. The unit ceased to be self-accounting in July of the same year. The last RCAF personnel departed the Station on 20 July 1964. It is interesting to note that former station's heritage continues to live on, known now as the community of "Le Radar".

The NBC Group - Don Nicks, John Bradley, Chris Charland.

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