In the early 1950s, Canadian rocket researcher Gerald Bull was researching new propulsion techniques for rockets with his team at CARDE when they stumbled over a way of harnessing nuclear power and rocketry in a way that produced massive thrust at little radiation.  Initially dismissed as impractical, it wasn't until Wernher Von Braun quit the US Army rocketry effort and moved to Canada that the program attracted serious research budgets.  Even then, it was derisively laughed at as "St Laurents' Moon Pie Dream" until the Soviets launched Sputnik in 1957. Suddenly, Dr Bulls' rocket was a hot priority!

The new Conservative government was pressured into funding the program and with the resources of Avro, Carde, NASA and the British Aviation industry behind it, the group soon had a functional Orbital Interceptor. Initially entering service in 1963, the first truly effective units were the Mark 4 "Cosmos" which saw action during the Cuban Missile Exchange of 1965, where they scored an impressive 100% shootdown rate on Soviet and US ICBMs. The loss of missiles led both sides to seek a diplomatic solution to the crisis.  The destruction that would have befallen civilization had even a few of the missiles gotten through would have been unimaginable, and led to Prime Minister Pearson being elected as Secretary General of the UN the following year, where he placed the RCSF at the use of the UN as a peacekeeping force.  It has since been involved in several international incidents, and has helped keep us safe from a nuclear exchange at least four times, three of which were accidental launches of ICBMs!

I used an ESTES model rocket they produced several years ago.  I really liked the cool "retro" design, so I added the cockpit and canopy, and hacked off the launch lugs.  Decals came from the spares box and my inkjet printer, and the pilot came from the "BashMent o' Doom".

Alvis 3.1