History of the Royal Canadian Air Force Aerospace Warfare Centre

The Canadian Forces Aerospace Warfare Centre (CFAWC) was stood-up in October 2005 to become the engine of change for air force transformation, support air power development and act as the steward for air power knowledge. The intent was for CFAWC to provide the RCAF with the knowledge to acquire the right capabilities and develop the appropriate doctrine to ensure an agile and integrated Air Force in the future.

CFAWC was formed by two locations: The Trenton location, a lodger unit of 8 Wing, was established with the command portion of the unit as well as the Doctrine Development; Concept Development and Experimentation; Analysis and Lessons Learned; Electronic Warfare Research and Support; Air Warfare Education; and specialized training branches. The Electronic Warfare Operational Support Branch, Air Synthetic Environment Coordination Office and Operational Research Branch were located at Shirley’s Bay in Ottawa. In 2013, as a result of infrastructure downsizing at Shirley’s Bay and the desire to consolidate CFAWC operations, the Air Synthetic Environment Coordination Office and Operational Research Branch began the process of relocating to Trenton.

In 2020, CFAWC was renamed to its current designation, the Royal Canadian Air Force Aerospace Warfare Centre (RCAF AWC). It has been reorganized into four supporting units: the Air and Space Power Development Centre, the Air and Space Integration Programme, 414 Electronic Warfare Support Squadron, and 434 Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron.

• Col J. F. Cottingham (2005-2008) 
• Col M. R. Dabros (2008–2009)
• LCol J. W. MacAleese (2009–2010)
• Col D. W. Joyce (2010–2012)
• Col J. J. A. M. Cournoyer (2012–2014)
• Col K. P. Truss (2014–2017)
• Col S. Elder (2017–2020)
• Col M. Ward (2020–2021)
• Col M.C.G. Lehoux (2021-2023)
• Col A. Ferriss (2023-current)

About the Clare L. Annis Building