CFB Shearwater Canadian Forces Base Shearwater , commonly referred to as CFB Shearwater , was a Canadian Forces Base located in Shearwater , Nova Scotia on the eastern shore of Halifax Harbour in the Halifax Regional Municipality . Following a base rationalization program in the mid - 1990s , the Canadian Forces closed CFB Shearwater as a separate formation and realigned the property ' s various facilities into CFB Halifax . These include : History . Shearwater is the second - oldest military aerodrome in Canada . In August 1918 the US Navy established Naval Air Station Halifax on the shores of Eastern Passage to support flying boat patrol aircraft . The land - based airfield was taken over by the Air Board in 1920 for civil flying operations , and later developed by the Canadian Air Force and the Royal Canadian Air Force . The station became known as RCAF Station Dartmouth and later RCAF Station Shearwater through the Second World War . Post - war , 1948 , the Royal Canadian Navy took over the facility , naming it HMCS " Shearwater " , also known as Royal Canadian Naval Air Station Shearwater ( RCNAS Shearwater ) . The combined land and sea - based aerodromes were used to station carrier - based maritime patrol and fighter aircraft . Shearwater was also the home to early experiments with ship - borne helicopters — something which was copied by navies around the world . During the 1960s , the aerodrome at the former RCAF Station Debert was attached to HMCS " Shearwater " as a training location for carrier landings . The February 1 , 1968 unification of the three service branches into the Canadian Forces saw HMCS " Shearwater " change its name to Canadian Forces Base Shearwater ( CFB Shearwater ) . Base rationalization and defence budget cutbacks for the Canadian Forces during the mid - 1990s saw a largely administrative move when the formation CFB Shearwater stood down and the facilities transferred to the formation CFB Halifax and aircraft operations becoming the responsibility of newly formed 12 Wing . 12 Wing is headquartered at Shearwater and reports to 1 Canadian Air Division . Heliport conversion project . During the late 1990s and early 2000s the Shearwater airfield was scaled back significantly as the facility transitioned to a heliport with surplus lands identified and transferred to Canada Lands Company . Prior to 2002 , Shearwater had two asphalt runways : By 2002 only runway 10 / 28 remained open . As part of the Department of National Defence ' s Shearwater Heliport Conversion Project , runway 10H / 28H was reduced in length to the east end only in July 2007 . At the same time , runway 16H / 34H was reopened , however for helicopter operations only . These changes allowed for heliport operations including instrument approaches and were accompanied with the construction of other non - airfield facilities in support of the Maritime Helicopter Project . Shearwater Heliport opened 31 July 2008 , consisting of a new 16H / 34H and various helipads for helicopter operations only . As part of the heliport conversion project , the old runway 16 / 34 was permanently closed and placed outside ( east ) of a new fence for the Shearwater Heliport , as shown in the Canada Flight Supplement effective 31 July 2008 . This land for the old runway 16 / 34 was then transferred by the Department of National Defence to the Canada Lands Company for sale . On 3 April 2009 the land for the old runway 16 / 34 was re - transferred from Canada Lands Company back to DND , however its future use is unknown . Shearwater Heliport ' s primary mission remains as a heliport in support of the Royal Canadian Navy ' s Maritime Forces Atlantic warships with shipborne helicopters operated by 12 Wing , a unit of the Royal Canadian Air Force . 12 Wing ' s squadrons at Shearwater Heliport in Nova Scotia and at Patricia Bay in British Columbia currently operate the Sikorsky CH - 124 Sea King but is expected to re - equip with the Sikorsky CH - 148 Cyclone commencing in 2012 with the conclusion of the Maritime Helicopter Project . There are currently numerous construction projects ongoing at Shearwater Heliport in support of the Maritime Helicopter Project , including the Maritime Helicopter Training Centre where No . 406 Squadron will be located , as well as a new No . 423 ( MH ) Squadron hangar facility , a new 12 Air Maintenance Squadron facility with 6 repair bays , and a new Operational Support Facility where the Helicopter Operational Test and Evaluation Facility ( HOTEF ) and various 12 Wing headquarter functions will be located . Current operations . Current operations at Shearwater are administratively and operationally part of CFB Halifax and revolve around two functionally separate facilities : 12 Wing . The Shearwater Heliport is the location of the headquarters of 12 Wing , whose sole purpose is to support and operate shipborne helicopters for the Royal Canadian Navy . 12 Wing is a RCAF unit and reports to 1 Canadian Air Division . 12 Wing operates out of two locations with four squadrons : Air shows . Beginning in the 1970s , CFB Shearwater began hosting an Armed Forces Day every fall , typically on the weekend following Labour Day , and included an air show where the long and wide runways at Shearwater hosted some of the largest aircraft in the world , including the U . S . Air Force ' s C - 5 Galaxy transport planes and B - 52 Stratofortress bombers . By the 1980s this air show came to be named the " Shearwater International Air Show " and was a popular event for military aviation enthusiasts in Eastern Canada and the Northeastern United States as the location of CFB Shearwater , coupled with the popularity of the Halifax area among military aircrew , resulted in heavy international participation from the RCAF , as well as the USAF , United States Navy , United States Marine Corps , Royal Air Force and numerous other NATO air forces in Europe . Defence cutbacks and unit and facility realignments from 1994 to 1996 saw CFB Shearwater stand down as a separate formation and the facility merged as an airfield attached to CFB Halifax . At this time , the military - organized " Shearwater International Air Show " was transferred to a civilian organization that saw the event renamed to the " Nova Scotia International Air Show . " Organizers of the " Nova Scotia International Air Show " continued to make use the Shearwater airfield for both ground displays and the air show component until 2002 . Modifications to the airfield from 2002 onward as part of the Shearwater Heliport Conversion Project saw runways closed , eliminating the ability of fixed - wing aircraft to land at Shearwater , forcing the airshow to remove the static ( ground ) display component of the event , with the air show component continuing to be staged in the skies over Shearwater ( using the nearby Halifax Stanfield International Airport as the fixed - wing airfield ) . The inconvenience of not having a ground component for the " Nova Scotia International Air Show " as a result of the Shearwater Heliport Conversion Project saw the entire event moved to Halifax Stanfield International Airport beginning in 2004 . From 2004 to 2008 the show was held at Halifax Stanfield International Airport which allowed for both static ( ground ) display and air show at the same venue , however the airport was deemed unsuitable due to numerous interruptions in the air show component by civilian air traffic movements . The air show moved to Yarmouth Airport in 2009 but returned to Shearwater in 2010 , the first time since 2003 that an air show was held at the historic airfield ( but again with no ground component ) . In 2011 the air show was renamed the " Atlantic Canada International Airshow " and was held at the Summerside Airport , formerly CFB Summerside , to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of that base . Organizers have stated that the " Atlantic Canada International Air Show " will likely rotate through the Shearwater airfield every second year . References . Milberry , Larry , ed . " Sixty Years — The RCAF and CF Air Command 1924 – 1984 " . Toronto : Canav Books , 1984 . ISBN 0 - 9690703 - 4 - 9 .