The Battle of the Atlantic was the longest campaign of World War II, which saw Allied forces fight German and Italian naval, submarine, and surface forces for nearly six years to ensure the safe flow of shipments between North America and Europe. This past Sunday the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 50 commemorated this battle and all of the lives lost at sea during WWII, as well as other historic battles such as the Battle of Vimy Ridge in WWI, and the Battle of Normandy, also during WWII. Master Sailor Zack Barnes is seen here tolling the bell for the Allied military vessels. 26 of the 175 Allied military vessels that were sunk belonged to the Royal Canadian Navy. Some 2,600 merchant ships were also lost during the six-year-long campaign that lasted the length of the Second World War. Chad Feehan photo.Master Corporal Myles Murphy (top photo) lays a wreath last Sunday to honour Master Corporal Darrell Cronin, during the annual Battle of the Atlantic ceremony at the CBS cenotaph in Long Pond. The ceremony honours people who lost their lives at sea during the Second World War. This year’s ceremony included armed forces members who would normally participate at the ceremony held in St. John’s, but couldn’t as the National War Memorial on Duckworth Street is being renovated to accommodate the grave of an unknown Newfoundland soldier from the First World War whose remains are being repatriated from France. This year’s ceremony in CBS also honoured seven Canadian paratroopers who died in a training exercise on the Ottawa River in 1968, and the loss of Tusker Flight 27 in October 1998. Master Corporal Cronin from Kelligrews and five other Search and Rescue technicians were killed when the Labrador helicopter they were flying in exploded in mid-air due to a fuel leak. Photo by Craig Westcott.Cpl. Stephanie Furey plays the Last Post at the conclusion of the ceremony. Photo by Chad Feehan
