these boilers was directed at two geared steam turbines which powered two shafts, providing to drive the ship at a maximum speed of . The ships had an endurance of at . DDH conversion Following successful trials aboard the frigate and sister ship , plans to convert the St. Laurent class took shape. The development of the beartrap, installed in during her 1962–63 conversion, finalized the concept. By keeping the aircraft secure, the beartrap eliminated the need for deck handling from landing to the hangar, or from hangar to takeoff. In the conversion to a helicopter-carrying vessel, Margaree was gutted except for machinery and some forward spaces. The hull was strengthened, fueling facilities for the helicopter and activated fin stabilizers installed. The fin stabilizers were to reduce roll in rough weather during helicopter operations. All seven St Laurents were fitted with helicopter platforms and SQS 504 Variable Depth Sonar (VDS). The single funnel was altered to twin stepped funnels to permit the forward extension of the helicopter hangar. To make room for the helicopter deck, the aft 3-inch mount and one of the Limbos were removed. The two 40 mm guns were also removed. Following the conversion, the displacement remained the same at standard load but at full load, it increased to . DELEX program In the late 1970s, under the Destroyer Life Extension (DELEX) program was commissioned to upgrade ten of the St. Laurent-class ships with new electronics, machinery, and hull upgrades and repairs. However, only enough was done to keep the ships in service into the late 1980s. For the St. Laurents, this meant hull and machinery repairs only. Service history Margaree was laid down on 12 September 1951 by Halifax Shipyards at Halifax, Nova Scotia and launched 29 March 1956. The ship was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy on 5 October 1957 at Halifax and initially carried the hull identification DDE 230 as a destroyer escort. After commissioning, Margaree was sent to join the west coast fleet. She was assigned to the Second Canadian Escort Squadron. In January 1958, the destroyer escort departed Esquimalt, British Columbia for a training cruise around the Pacific, returning in April. In 1962, with and , the ship took part in the large naval exercise JETEX 62 in the Pacific. On 25 September 1964 the ship began her conversion to a helicopter carrying destroyer (DDH) at Victoria Machinery Depot. The ship