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HMCS Transcona

There has been only one vessel named HMCS Transcona in the Royal Canadian Navy.

HMCS Transcona (J271) / Bangor-class minesweeper

The Bangor class ships were built in order to replace the old Basset-class minesweepers, as they were larger, faster, had much greater endurance, and burned oil as opposed to coal. Most of the Bangors were named after Canadian towns and cities, the rest after bays. As enemy mines were laid only once in 1943 in Canadian waters, the Bangors were used primarily as escorts to coastal shipping or as local escorts to ocean convoys. Sixteen of them, however, assisted in sweeping the approaches to Normandy before D-Day, and stayed to help clear German and Allied minefields in the Channel for some months afterward.

Built at Sorel, Quebec and commissioned there on 12 August 1942, HMCS Transcona was the last Bangor-class minesweeper to join the Royal Canadian Navy. She arrived at Halifax, Nova Scotia, on 19 December, having escorted HMCS Provider en route, and remained in the shipyard until 6 March 1943, owing to engine defects. Following work-ups at Halifax, she was assigned to Western Local Escort Force in April and, in June, to the newly created Escort Group W-2.

In May 1944, she joined Halifax Force until June 1945, after which she performed various local tasks until paid off at Sydney, Nova Scotia, on 31 July 1945. During this period, she was under refit and repair at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, between February and May 1945. On 1 September of that year, HMCS Transcona was transferred to the marine section of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and renamed French. She was sold for scrap at La Have, Nova Scotia in 1961.

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