# Mid-Canada Line Updates

Written by [Robin Monks](https://coldwar.tech/about), a Cold War archival expert.

*I've received two bundles of scanned records from Library and Archives Canada with Mid-Canada Line documents during their operation period.*

## Metadata

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| Date | 2025-11-20 21:25:00 |

I requested and received two bundles about the Mid-Canada Line from Library and Archives Canada. It's always a joy to review documents from that era and get a fuller story of what happened in the minds of military leaders.

## Radar Removals

The first set of original documents, scanned in color complete with marginalia, focuses primarily on the removal of ASR-3 radars from Knob Lake, Cranberry Portage and Stoney Mountain. These documents, dating from late 1960 and early 1961, reveal how the RCAF confirmed it did not need these radars and removed their maintenance from its budget. 

People speculated whether this would appear to be a scaling down of the RCAF's monitoring ability. It's interesting to see the concern being expressed, knowing that the RCAF would shut down the entire Mid-Canada Line not long after.

> The Chairman expressed concern that declaring these radars surplus at this time could have a detrimental effect on the pending gap filler programme. He indicated that there was a strong possibility that the true function of these radars might be misunderstood, with the result that declaration of these radars surplus might be misinterpreted to the effect that the RCAF is downgrading the requirement for air defence radars.
>
> -- Memorandum, 22 Dec 1960

## Project Wood Duck

The next set of documents was much more interesting and revealed the original code name of the experiment that proved the technology for the Mid-Canada Line program, "Project Wood Duck." Looking online, I believe this is the first time the codename of the project has been documented. That this information is only now being openly documented 71 years later is why I love doing this sort of research.

> The code name "Wood Duck" has been given to the project on studies of interference from birds. The present plan is to set up three links in the Kingsville, Ontario, area, where the birds are under close control. Canada geese in large numbers are present in the sanctuary there, and controlled experiments on migrating flocks are possible.
>
> -- Letter to the Chairman of the Defence Research Board, Shirley Bay, Ontario.

## What's next

I've got over 300 pages to read and will be expanding the Mid-Canada Line entry to include these details. I may also create some specific pages under Places for these experiments that were part of Project Wood Duck, but we'll see. 

Any Crown Copyright on these documents has long expired, and as such, you can also download and read these new documents right now!

[Mid-Canada Line ASR-3 Radar Removals](https://coldwar.tech/archive/documents/mcl-radar-removals)
[Project Wood Duck: CW Doppler Detection Experiments](https://coldwar.tech/archive/documents/project-wood-duck)

Tags: radar, canada

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Canonical URL: https://coldwar.tech/journal/mid-canada-line-updates
Last updated: 2026-07-14