Operation Nanook about to begin in Inuvik and elsewhere

A large contingent of Canadian soldiers arrived in Inuvik earlier this month to conduct elements of 2025’s Operation Nanook.

The annual Canadian Armed Forces operation – full name Operation Nanook-Nunalivut – involves a series of military activities in locations like the NWT, Yukon, Nunavut and Labrador.

The operation tests the forces’ ability to carry out exercises under the “harshest conditions” of the High Arctic. It will run from February 23 to March 9, though some participants arrived in Inuvik on February 4 and will stay until mid or late March to clean up.

LCol Darren Turner told Cabin Radio this year’s Operation Nanook-Nunalivut includes nearly double the 350 personnel who took part last year, along with allied forces from the United States and Europe.

Turner said he understands this is the largest Operation Nanook-Nunalivut held to date, once additional ground staff and reserve participants are factored in.

For the first time, members of the primary reserve – civilian employees or students who dedicate themselves to the military on a part-time basis – will take on headquarters functions, he said, which is “a really, really big deal for the Canadian Army.”

“Here, we will have up to an 80-person headquarters running all of the air and ground operations. It is pretty substantial and we’re very proud of that,” Turner said, adding this year’s operation also has a ground force of more than 100 soldiers.

Training will take place within what’s called an “operating domain” in and around Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk, where members are able to test new equipment, shoot weapons and engage in activities involving aircraft and snowmobiles.

Prior their arrival in Inuvik, Turner said members had been preparing for months.

While flight crews practised night vision flying, troop deployment flights and how to carry heavy loads, the Army ran cold-weather courses to gain survival skills. Medics, maintainers and mechanics have also been training for the operation.

“We have been working in close cooperation with the Air Force, the Navy, other army units and our allies to make sure that we get it right, and that we are all communicating the same intentions,” Turner said.

“We take it very seriously, and we hope to capture the lessons that we learn here and take those home with us to share those with other brigades, both regular force and reserve.”

Over the next month, scientists from Defence Research and Development Canada will also study how the cold affects thinking and the ability of armed forces members to work.

One part of the training is ice diving for members of the Army and Navy as well as international divers. Participants will cut a hole through the surface of the ice then descend in the water with an umbilical cable tethered to them.

Divers will carry out a search to practise finding items below the surface in a controlled environment.

“They will have some great stories to tell as they mentor younger divers when they when they return home,” said Turner, who is himself a combat diver.

“I have done it during the winter in Petawawa, which can get quite cold, but I think they’re going to be experiencing some extreme cold here. I think the weather forecast for the next couple of weeks is quite chilly, but … there is very, very strict diver and crew safety – closely monitored by a series of supervisors, ensuring that we don’t allow injuries.”

Operation Nanook participants will also take part in this week’s IRC hockey tournament, visit East Three Secondary School on March 3, and attend Inuvik’s Arctic Market on March 7.

Turner said he has enjoyed his interactions with locals so far.

“What we’re trying to do, and I’m bringing this kind-of really close to home now, is we are offering our military members every opportunity to experience the North,” he said.

“When work for some is over and they’ve got some time, we’re trying to get people into the community, to experience the community centre, and to get engaged, and to see for ourselves what incredible aspects the North has to offer.”