The Harry DeWolf-class offshore patrol vessel is Canada's Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship class, built by Irving Shipbuilding under the National Shipbuilding Strategy for Arctic sovereignty, domestic patrol, and international operations. Six Royal Canadian Navy ships were delivered from 2020 to 2025, and two Canadian Coast Guard variants, CCGS Donjek and CCGS Sermilik, extend the design toward fisheries enforcement, search and rescue, icebreaking, science, aids-to-navigation, and low-Arctic patrol work.
Canadian sources treat the Royal Canadian Navy ships as the Harry DeWolf-class AOPS baseline and the Canadian Coast Guard ships as adapted AOPS 7 and 8 variants built by the same Halifax yard.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| Royal Canadian Navy AOPS 1-6 | Arctic and offshore patrol vessel class | Six RCN vessels were delivered between July 2020 and August 2025 for armed sea-borne surveillance, Arctic sovereignty, domestic support, and overseas deployments. Sources: RCN Arctic and offshore patrol ships |
| Canadian Coast Guard AOPS 7-8 | Coast Guard patrol and ice-capable variant | CCGS Donjek and CCGS Sermilik adapt the class for fisheries enforcement, offshore search and rescue, low-Arctic patrols, icebreaking, science missions, aids to navigation, humanitarian assistance, and community resupply. Sources: Canadian Coast Guard AOPS project, Canadian Coast Guard AOPS backgrounder, CCGS Donjek launch |
Published Canadian sources identify the ship class's gun, aviation capacity, and combat-management fit. The links below point only to existing public catalog records.
| Compatible item | Item type | Compatibility evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | 25 mm cannon | Royal Canadian Navy material describes the class's remote-controlled 25 mm Mk 38 gun as using the M242 cannon for domestic constabulary roles. Sources: Harry DeWolf class fact sheet |
 | Maritime helicopter | The class can accommodate embarked aircraft ranging up to the CH-148 Cyclone, depending on the mission. |
 | Combat management system | Canadian naval engineering reporting identifies CMS 330 as deployed on Arctic and Offshore Patrol Vessels. Sources: Maritime Engineering Journal 114 |
The class sits in Canadian Arctic patrol and maritime-security service rather than a single combat-weapon lane, with the Royal Canadian Navy ships and Canadian Coast Guard variants sharing a common National Shipbuilding Strategy lineage.
The six Royal Canadian Navy ships are armed patrol vessels for sea-borne surveillance, Arctic sovereignty, partner operations, domestic support, and deployments abroad.
The two Canadian Coast Guard variants are oriented toward NAFO patrols, conservation and protection enforcement, search and rescue, icebreaking, science, aids to navigation, humanitarian assistance, and resupply tasks.
Official fact sheets describe cranes, vehicle and payload spaces, command and control areas, container carriage, and an A-frame on the Coast Guard ships for science and aids-to-navigation work.
Canada's AOPS project records September 1, 2015 as the steel-cutting milestone for ship 1.
Sources: Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship project
HMCS Harry DeWolf, the first ship in the class, was delivered to Canada on July 31, 2020.
Sources: Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship project
The sixth Royal Canadian Navy AOPS, HMCS Robert Hampton Gray, was delivered on August 21, 2025.
Sources: Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship project, RCN Arctic and offshore patrol ships
Canadian Coast Guard project records list November 2025 as the keel-laying milestone for AOPS 8, the future CCGS Sermilik.
Sources: Canadian Coast Guard AOPS project, CCGS Sermilik keel laying
Canada announced the launch of CCGS Donjek, the first of two Canadian Coast Guard AOPS variants, with delivery expected after sea trials in late 2026.
Sources: CCGS Donjek launch, Irving CCGS Donjek launch
