An official groundbreaking ceremony was held August 4, 2016 at the site for the Quinte West LAV III Monument. The project was spearheaded by the Honorary Colonels Group at 8 Wing/CFB Trenton. The monument was constructed from demilitarized LAVs used during the mission in Afghanistan and spare parts from manufacturer General Dynamics Land Systems Canada in London.
Dozens of Canadian soldiers were either killed or wounded in Afghanistan while riding in a LAV III armoured vehicle. The LAV III took quite a beating, but it’s important to know it saved a lot of lives as well. The armoured vehicle was moved to its concrete pad on September 23, 2016, next to the Afghanistan Repatriation Memorial where the names of 158 Canadian soldiers killed during the mission in Afghanistan are carved in granite.
Quinte West is extremely proud of its military heritage, being the home of Canada’s largest military air force base, 8 Wing/CFB Trenton. Honorary Colonels Group at 8 Wing began discussing the project in late 2015. They raised money to complete the project, the city helped, Wayne Scaletta transported the LAV to the site and Cooney Excavating was hired to construct the base for the monument.
The LAV III Monument program was launched in November 2014 with a prototype sponsored by the Federal Government and built by General Dynamics Land Systems Canada. Subject to government approval, it’s estimated up to 250 LAV III Monuments will be made available through the application process to communities across the country.
The LAV III Monuments are built from demilitarized LAV IIIs by Militex Coating Inc. and Fanshawe College students in London, Ontario.
