Coordinates: 70°10'17"N, 124°43'30"W
PIN-MAIN was one of four Canadian Main stations on the DEW Line, alongside CAM-MAIN (Cambridge Bay), FOX-MAIN (Hall Beach), and DYE-MAIN (Cape Dyer). Serving as PIN Sector headquarters, it was sited on a hilltop at approximately 250 feet above sea level on the Parry Peninsula, overlooking the Amundsen Gulf. It was the primary logistical hub for materiel and the main transfer point for personnel across PIN Sector stations stretching eastward to Cape Peel, Nunavut. The nearest settlement is Paulatuk, approximately 100 km to the south.
PIN Sector stations
During the DEW era, PIN-MAIN controlled eight subordinate stations — three auxiliary and five intermediate:
- PIN-1 (Auxiliary) — Cape Young, Northwest Territories → NWS SRR
- PIN-2 (Auxiliary) — Lady Franklin Point, Nunavut → NWS SRR
- PIN-3 (Auxiliary) — Byron Bay, Nunavut → NWS SRR
- PIN-A (Intermediate) — Pearce Point Harbour, Northwest Territories — closed 1963
- PIN-B (Intermediate) — Clifton Point, Northwest Territories — closed 1963
- PIN-C (Intermediate) — Sturt Point, Nunavut — closed 1963
- PIN-D (Intermediate) — Cape Young East, Nunavut — closed 1963
- PIN-E (Intermediate) — Cape Peel, Nunavut — closed 1963
Site layout
The station occupied 2,607 acres with a large airfield, a seaside beaching area for sealift operations, and expansive dormitory facilities. Potable water was hauled 3.5 miles in summer and 6.5 miles in winter. The site housed a military-manned Data Center — a distinction from some other Main stations where contractors operated the sector headquarters.
Climate extremes ranged from −47°C (−53°F) to 24°C (75°F), with approximately 116 cm (46 inches) of annual snowfall.
Radar and communications
During the DEW era, PIN-MAIN used the AN/FPS-19 L-band search radar housed in a geodesic radome, with tropospheric scatter antennas providing long-haul communications to adjacent stations. With the North Warning System transition in August 1989, the site received an AN/FPS-117 solid-state 3-D radar, which remains operational today.
Operations
PIN-MAIN served as the key logistics hub for its sector, conducting regular resupply operations to outlying stations by air and seasonal sealift. It operated as one of six Main stations on the primary DEW Line, providing sector command and communications hub functions alongside POW-MAIN, BAR-MAIN, CAM-MAIN, FOX-MAIN, and DYE-MAIN. The five intermediate gap-filler sites in the PIN Sector were closed in 1963 when the AN/FPS-23 Doppler detection concept was scaled back across the entire line.
Sounding rocket programme
Between 1969 and 1982, eighteen sounding rocket launches were conducted at Cape Parry for atmospheric and ionospheric research, utilizing the station's infrastructure. The first launch took place on 7 March 1969 and the last on 21 January 1982. The programme included the notable CENTAUR campaign of November–December 1981, which launched five large sounding rockets carrying approximately 30 scientific experiments.
Transition and current status
PIN-MAIN transitioned to the North Warning System in August 1989 with the installation of an AN/FPS-117 solid-state 3-D radar. The DEW Line was formally inactivated and the NWS officially activated on 15 July 1993. Today the site remains the primary logistics support base for NWS stations across the PIN and BAR sectors, with a small permanent crew that deploys to outlying stations for maintenance during summer months. The area surrounding the station is now part of the Cape Parry Migratory Bird Sanctuary, established in 1961 to protect thick-billed murre nesting habitat.