HMCS Protecteur (AOR 509)[a] was the lead ship of the Protecteur-class replenishment oilers in service with the Royal Canadian Navy.

In six months Protecteur logged over 50,000 nautical miles (93,000 km; 58,000 mi), delivering over 150,000 barrels (~20,000 t) of fuel and 390 pallets of dry goods to deployed coalition ships.

[5] Four BAE Systems Mark 36 SRBOC chaff launchers and an AN/SLQ-25 Nixie towed decoy were the ship's primary defences.

[19] The Sikorsky CH-124 Sea King helicopters on board Protecteur also provided weapons support, carrying Mark 46 torpedoes and a 7.62 mm machine gun.

[23] In 1974 the Polish sailboat Gedania embarked on an attempt to traverse the Northwest Passage, as part of a journey to circumnavigate the North and South American continents.

[26] In 1980, while Protecteur was operating off the coast of Portugal, Commanding Officer Captain Larry Dzioba hoisted an Esso flag on the ship's mast, joking that they were the "biggest floating gas station in the neighbourhood".

[33][34] In 1992, Protecteur was sent to help after Hurricane Andrew in Florida,[35] with tasks including repairing schools, community centres, and hospitals in the region.

[41] Protecteur participated in Operation Apollo for six months, logging over 50,000 nautical miles (93,000 km; 58,000 mi) and delivering over 150,000 barrels (~20,000 t) of fuel and 390 pallets of dry goods,[42] returning to CFB Esquimalt in November 2002.

[45] On 19 September 2011, Protecteur departed from CFB Esquimalt for a two-month deployment off southern California as part of the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group.

Protecteur joined the destroyer Algonquin and the frigate Ottawa in Fleet Week activities in San Diego, California, between 26 and 30 September 2011.

[48] On 27 February 2014, Protecteur suffered an engine room fire and breakdown 340 nautical miles (630 km; 390 mi) northeast of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

She was moving at limited speeds and the United States Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyer Michael Murphy, Ticonderoga-class cruiser Chosin, and the Military Sealift Command-operated Powhatan-class tugboat Sioux were dispatched to assist.

[53] On 16 May, Protecteur left Pearl Harbor under tow from the United States Military Sealift Command-operated Safeguard-class rescue and salvage ship Salvor for an expected three week journey to her home port of CFB Esquimalt.

[57] Lack of spare parts for the ship's boiler and the fact that she is a single-skinned tanker were the main driving points to replacing Protecteur and Preserver.

Following extensive damage as a result of a fire in February 2014, Protecteur's decommissioning was brought forward as repairs would have been "...too expensive for the navy to consider" given that she was due to be retired in 2017.

[63] On 12 September 2017 Vice Admiral Ron Lloyd, commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, announced that the new Joint Support Ships would no longer be named for battles of the War of 1812.