Mid-Canada Line Site 050 Fort Albany

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Mid-Canada Line Site 050 Fort Albany
Part of Mid-Canada Line
Fort Albany, Ontario, Canada
Mid-Canada Line Site 050 Fort Albany is located in Ontario
Mid-Canada Line Site 050 Fort Albany
Mid-Canada Line Site 050 Fort Albany
Coordinates52°12′36″N 81°40′05″W / 52.210°N 81.668°W / 52.210; -81.668
Site information
Controlled by Royal Canadian Air Force
ConditionRemediated
Site history
Built by Royal Canadian Air Force
In use1957-1965 (1957-1965)
Demolished2010

Mid-Canada Line Site 050 Fort Albany was a part of the Mid-Canada Line air defence network. During the late 1950s, the Mid-Canada Line (MCL) was developed as a secondary line of detection in case enemy aircraft penetrated the Distant Early Warning Line. This consisted of approximately 90 unmanned sites and eight Sector Control Stations located along the 55th parallel. Each site sent out a radio beam to its neighbouring site. If an aircraft interrupted the beam, an intruder alarm would sound.

Fort Albany was chosen as a relay station for signals coming in from the Sector Control Site at RCAF Station Winisk and would retransmit those signals to Mid-Canada Line Site 060 Relay via tropospheric scatter (troposcatter).

MCL Site 050 ceased operations as a troposcatter repeater in April 1965 when the Mid-Canada Line was no longer economically feasible or required due to improvements in technology.

The site was remediated in 2010 when all contaminated soil was removed from the area after it was determined the site was contaminated with PCBs and hydrocarbons.[1]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "A Look At The Land Is Everything Growing Well Mid-Canada Line Radar Sites" (PDF), A Look At The Land Is Everything Growing Well Mid-Canada Line Radar Sites, retrieved 2013-09-01