Two Canadian surveillance aircraft have been sent to the Libyan coast to help coalition forces keep ships from bringing weapons and mercenaries into the North African country.

The Auroras departed 14 Wing Greenwood in Nova Scotia and are in the midst of travelling to a military base in Trapani, Italy.

Defence Minister Peter MacKay announced the deployment plans on Thursday afternoon, saying that two CP-140 Aurora planes will soon be engaged in the "evolving" mission against Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.

NATO began patrolling Libya's coast on Wednesday, with the intention of cutting off the ability of ships that could be carrying weapons to reach shore. But it currently does not have enough vessels to patrol the entire coast.