CCGS John A. Macdonald manufacturer Davie Shipbuilding
Service history
The vessel was constructed by Davie Shipbuilding at their yard in Lauzon, Quebec with the yard number 620 and launched on 31 October 1959. During construction, the vessel was visited by Soviet officials who took interest in her design. There was a distinct resemblance to John A. MacDonald in the five ships in the next class of Soviet icebreaker, though they were larger and more powerful. The vessel entered service as part of the government fleet in September 1960 as CGS John A. Macdonald.In 1962, John A. Macdonald transferred to the newly created Canadian Coast Guard and set a record by reaching Tanquary Fjord, the closest to the North Pole a Canadian vessel had ever been. In 1967, John A. Macdonald transited the Northwest Passage in order to aid the smaller icebreaker CCGS Camsell in the western Arctic. Following that, the icebreaker then travelled to assist USCGC Northwind after the United States Coast Guard vessel became trapped in heavy ice north of Point Barrow, Alaska. The vessel then returned to the East Coast via the Panama Canal, circumnavigating North America in the process. John A Macdonald was awarded the U.S. Coast Guard Unit Commendation "for extremely meritorious service in the support of United States Coast Guard operations during the period of 23 September 1967 to 08 October 1967", during the Arctic West Summer 1967 cruise by Admiral Willard J. Smith, Commandant, United States Coast Guard.
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