AFP: Canada rivals spar over F-35 purchase ahead of election
Ottawa (AFP) - Prime Minister Stephen Harper shot down Monday a political rival's campaign pledge to scrap a multibillion-dollar purchase of F-35 fighter jets, saying it would "crater" Canada's aerospace sector.
Liberal leader Justin Trudeau had said he would take the Lockheed Martin's F-35 out of the running to replace the nation's aging fleet of fighter jets.
Trudeau says that helping develop the aircraft, the apparent frontrunner in the bidding process, does not oblige Canada to buy the jets for its air force, calling the purchase and lifetime maintenance of 65 F-35 jets for Can$44.8 billion (USD$33.8 billion) a boondoggle.
That would leave three -- the Eurofighter Typhoon, the Dassault Rafale and Boeing's Super Hornet -- as candidates in the largest military procurement in Canadian history, which has come under fire for spiraling costs and lack of transparency.
WNU Editor: Election rhetoric aside, there are problems with Canada's F-35 purchase .... namely that with the decline of the Canadian dollar, the jet is no longer affordable .... The F-35 is now unaffordable for Canada thanks to the low Canadian dollar (National Post). More at the following link .... Canada could pull out of F-35 deal without financial penalty: procurement expert (Ottawa Citizen). As to what jet the Canadian air force should have .... I have long been a proponent of the Super Hornet. It has two engines so that in the event that one shuts down over the Arctic, it would not be a big deal. And (2) .... Canadian crews are familiar with the plane since they have been maintaining Canada's existing F-18 fleet for years.
More News On Canada's Purchase Of The F-35 Now Being In Doubt
Justin Trudeau vows to scrap F-35 fighter jet program -- F-35
Canada Liberal leader Trudeau says would scrap F-35 program -- Reuters
Justin Trudeau vows to ditch F-35 in favour of ‘more affordable’ fighter jets and a ‘leaner’ military -- National Post
Canada's Liberals Against F-35 Purchase -- Defense News/AFP
Justin Trudeau defends plan to scrap procurement of F-35 fighter jets -- Toronto Sun/Canadian press
Liberals 'living in a dream world' on F-35 cancellation, Stephen Harper says -- CBC
Harper slams Trudeau over plans to kill F-35 purchase -- Toronto Sun/Canadian Press
Scrapping F-35 purchase will ‘crater’ aerospace sector, Stephen Harper says -- Ottawa Citizen
Canada opposition NDP says would keep F-35 in race for new jets -- Reuters
I agree with the editor in this. We don't need the F35 with all its hastles and expense. The Super Hornet would do just fine as a multirole jet.
ReplyDeleteIn a perfect world we d be talking to the Russians about procuring some of their gear. With our dollar low, and sinking, this would be the time to be looking at Sukois or Migs for the best bang for our buck. Mig 31s (remind me of the Arrow) would be great for patrolling/intercepting in our airspace, and Frogfoots would perform nicely for the ground attack role.
I seem to recall the Russians paying Ottawa a visit not that many years ago offering us some of their wares. They were turned down.
Sigh, one can dream I suppose....
One can also hope for spare parts and engines.
ReplyDeleteThe bird I wish was being rolled out would be the f-15 silent eagle that we offered the south Koreans. It even had a thrust vectoring option.
I also agree with the WNU Editor.
ReplyDeleteCanada should back out of from purchasing the disastrous F-35, and consider other aircraft (for example the Super Hornet, as the editor pointed out), at least for the interim.
Wait and see whether the F-35 (or any other 5th gen fighter) successfully finishes development and then reevaluate. From then, replace the aging CF-18s with the modern 5th gen fighters, with the Super Hornets in reserve.
The Super Hornet cannot be the plane for the future when faced against a modern nation equipped with ever-modernizing SAM technology. However, in the meantime, it is a more than suitable replacement.
Just my thoughts.