SASKATCHEWAN

Canadian Forces Station Yorkton:

RCAF Station Yorkton opened as a Pinetree Line radar station on 15 October 1962, about 10 miles west of the former wartime training base No. 11 Service Flying Training School. 46 Radar Squadron was formed to handle the radar duties, reporting to the Central NORAD Region.

The station was re-named CFS Yorkton in May 1967.

CFS Yorkton closed on 1 August 1986. The site is now the Whitespruce Centre, a youth addiction facility. Most of the original buildings remain and are in good condition.

Source Material: "Sentinel" Magazine from June 1968, pg 46, History of 2CFFTS web site - http://www.moosejaw.dnd.ca/2his_e.asp#to_top, the Pinetree Line web site - http://www.pinetreeline.org & the Air Cadets Glider Training web site - http://www.mts.net/~rgspra/hist.html.

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Canadian Forces Station Alsask:

Opened in 1962 as Royal Canadian Air Force Station Alsask, with the radar functions being run by No. 44 Aircraft Control & Warning Squadron. Re-named CFS Alsask in 1968, the station closed in 1987. Most of the station remains today. The gym and pool are used by residents of Alsask. The former Construction Engineering building is a mechanical shop and one of the old buildings is used as offices for the Alsask Golf Club and a craft centre.

The barracks were used for a period as a senior citizens residence, but the centre is now closed. One of the PMQ trailers is still occupied, but will be vacated in the near future. Most of the others were moved off site years ago.

All that remains of the operations centre is one lone radar tower (minus the radar unit), complete with radome. The radar tower had been used by Transport Canada for tracking civilian aircraft until 1996. A proposal to turn the old radar tower into a Radome museum never came to fruition, however, it was designated a heritage property in 2002.

Source material: Information supplied by Gord Chiliak, Mayor of Alsask (2004) & the personal recollections of the author (2004).

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Canadian Forces Station Dana:

Opened in 1962 as RCAF Station Dana (also known as Sage Hill), with the radar functions being run by No. 45 Radar Squadron. 

The station consisted of three pulsed radars, and support facilities, including barracks, married quarters (trailers), a school, chapel, bowling alley and gym. The site was powered by a natural gas-fired power plant, that also generated steam for heating some of the buildings.

With the Unification of the forces, the station was re-named CFS Dana in 1968. 

The station closed in 1987.

The Sagehill Development Corporation bought the base for $180k.  For many years the PMQs (trailers) were rented out to civilians, but they are no longer there. For a time in the early 90s, a food company operated out of the site, but went out of business within a couple years. In the mid 90s, the base was sold again and became the Signal Hill Buffalo Farm.

As of 2011, the buildings are in disrepair, with roofs collapsing on some of them. Only one radar tower remains, and it's radome has been deflated. The owner died in 2011 and current ownership is unknown, but it is still a buffalo ranch.