Prime Minister-designate Justin Trudeau is showing every sign of following through on his pledge to cancel Canada’s participation in the F-35 program and that will likely mean a three-way race for a less expensive and less capable aircraft to replace the CF-18.
The bonus is that the RCAF will probably end up with more airplanes.
Ruling out the F-35 (there may not be a legal way to keep it out of the bidding, however) effectively leaves the F/A-18 Super Hornet, Dassault’s Rafale and the Eurofighter as contenders for the contract. However, without the F-35 in the mix, Saab might rethink entering the race with its updated Gripen NG.
None of those options has the combination of stealth, surveillance and weapons capabilities that the F-35 and some other fifth generation designs from Russia and China have but Trudeau has said he doesn’t think Canada needs a fifth generation fighter because Canada won’t need to attack anything.
As if to punctuate that premise, one of Trudeau’s first acts after the election was to tell U.S. President Barack Obama that Canada will cease participation in the bombing campaign against ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria. That likely means the Aurora long-range patrol missions will also be halted.
There was no mention of the need to replace fixed wing search and rescue aircraft during the election but that will also be on the new PM’s plate.
Window-Washing Drones
It seems that there is no end to innovative and imaginative uses and applications for drones. SkyDweller Technologies of Victoria, British Columbia, founded just last July, is using a drone to wash building façades and […]
Some of this Week’s Other Highlights in Brief
The Ontario government has placed an order with Airbus Helicopters for three H135 helicopters for the Ontario Provincial Police in Ottawa, the Greater Toronto Area and in the OPP’s North West (Thunder Bay) Region. The […]
RCAF, CASARA Employ New Tool in SAR Missions
Search and rescue efforts by the RCAF and the volunteer-run Civil Air Search and Rescue Association (CASARA) are becoming more effective with the implementation of the Cellular Airborne Sensors for Search and Rescue (CASSAR) system. […]
Some of this Week’s Other Highlights in Brief
Piper’s M700 Fury has achieved Transport Canada certification after a Canada-based customer purchased Piper’s latest turboprop. The single-engine aircraft will be certified by TC for flight into known icing conditions. Piper’s fastest aircraft ever, powered […]
TSB Releases Report on Nunavut King Air Mishap
A Keewatin Air Beechcraft King Air B200, performing a medevac flight in Nunavut on December 17, 2021, veered off an icy Runway 27 in Sanikiluaq (CYSK), on an island in Hudson Bay, when a landing […]
Some of this Week’s Other Highlights in Brief
Bombardier continues its record-breaking streak with its Global 7500, having set 50 speed records between city pairs in 50 weeks. The aircraft, whose top speed is Mach 0.925 and baseline range is 7,700 nm, clocked […]
Boeing Predicts Greater Demand for Technicians, Flight Attendants
We’ve heard of looming pilot shortages for years, but now Boeing, known for analyzing and predicting aviation staffing challenges, says there will be greater demand for roles other than pilots. In their latest outlook, the […]
Some of this Week’s Other Highlights in Brief
The last leg of the Hawaii Mars’ final voyage took place on Wednesday evening (Aug, 21) as the Nickel Brothers transported the behemoth along the 3.2-kilometre stretch from Victoria airport’s seaplane base to the British […]
The Hawaii Mars’ Final Approach
The weeks-long effort that went into making it possible for the Hawaii Mars, one of only two remaining Second-World-War-era Martin Mars flying boats, to fly to its final resting place at a B.C. museum paid […]
Some of this Week’s Other Highlights in Brief
Spain is the latest European Union country to place an order for De Havilland Canada’s DHC-515 Firefighter water bomber. The announcement follows one made last month by Greece, Croatia and Portugal who together placed orders […]
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