29 minutes, colour,
stereo, Betacam SP, ©1997 Big Muddy
Films,
Banff
Centre for the Arts co-production

Tracking
Distance aired on SCN (Saskatchewan
Communication Network) on November 25, 1999. It was last broadcast on
April 21,
2004.
C.F.S. Dana once
operated as a NORAD air defence radar
station, seventy-two kilometres east of Saskatoon. It was one of 33
stations in
the Pinetree radar line that stretched across Canada on or about the
49th
parallel. Construction of the line was complete by 1954 at a cost of
$450
million (1950s dollars). The cost to the United States was $300 million
while
Canada
contributed $150 million. The Pinetree line's defensive purpose was to
track
the potential threat of Soviet nuclear bombers that could enter North
American
airspace through the artic during the cold war. It operated in
conjunction with
two additional layers of air defence radar to the north, the Mid-Canada
line
(unmanned sites) and DEW line (Distance Early Warning) in the artic.
The system
was most effective during the early stages of the cold war.
Canadian Forces Station
(C.F.S.)
Dana, a NORAD Pinetree Line radar station, operated from 1962 to 1986,
and was officially closed on August 30, 1987.
It
enlisted 200-300 service personnel and their families at any given
time, though a much greater number people were involved at the station
over the years. What remains of
this military installation is explored
and
remembered in this half-hour documentary through ten individuals who
once worked
at the base. There are insights from
a cross-section of people such as
radar technicians, an elderly school principal, and a retired air force
major.
The current owner of the station explains how he came to own the
military property
as he stands before a herd of buffalo that now graze the area.
Observations about the
cold
war period are given from some those who served at the station. Some
question what the cold war was really all about. A radar
technician explains that during the late 1970s, Canada's radar air
defence
towers were stocked with Soviet-made vacuum tubes, pointing to the
industry behind the military and the cold war.
Although many such radar
stations stretched across Canada
within the Pinetree Line, the intent of this documentary is to focus on
C.F.S.
Dana, Saskatchewan. For the filmmaker, the station served as one of the
first
childhood homes during the early 1970s. Despite all of its military and
political intentions Greg would like to note that it was a great place
to grow up.
Sadly, some of the
people involved in the project over 10 years ago on
the documentary have since passed away including the station owner, Joe
Saxinger who graciously allowed and assisted in the production. Peter
Ford, sound recordist on the project, retired employee for the CBC,
worked like a trooper volunteering his efforts, also deceased in 2000.
John Armstrong and Arley Philips have also since left us.
The project was
completed primarily by contribution of volunteers and with the
assistance of various insitutions such as the Banff Centre for the
Arts, EM Media in Calgary and the National Film Board of Canada.
Richard Agecoutay volunteered a great deal of time and effort as the
project's director of photography. His creative eye proved to be a
great asset to the overall look and delivery of the documentary. The
post-production environment was provided by the Banff Centre for the
Arts under a co-production status which also helped make the production
possible. Access to broadcast media back in 1997 was more expensive and
difficult to access than it is today with the advent of Final Cut Pro
and the like.