Fri Jun 9, 2017 2:00pm EDT
By David Ljunggren
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada is pressing ahead
with plans to buy an interim fleet of 18 fighters, the country's top soldier
told Reuters, speaking amid tensions with the United States that could derail a
proposed deal with Boeing Co.
General Jonathan Vance, chief of the defense
staff general, said the armed forces needed the jets as a stopgap measure while
Canada prepares a competition to buy a fleet of 88 new planes, a process
scheduled to take five years.
"There is a capability gap," he
said in an interview late on Thursday. "There is a gap, and it needs to be
filled."
Canada's fleet of 77 CF-18s, some of which
are almost 40 years old, is coming to the end of its operational life.
Ottawa said last year it wanted to buy 18
Boeing Super Hornets as an interim measure but has since threatened to scrap
the plan unless the U.S. company drops an anti-dumping challenge against
Canadian planemaker Bombardier Inc.
Vance declined to comment on the dispute.
Critics say it makes little sense to buy
fighters that might be only used for a short period. Vance dismissed the idea
of leasing the fleet.
"One cannot lease fighters," he
said.
Should Canada decide not to acquire the
Boeing planes as a stopgap measure, it could order from Lockheed Martin Corp,
Dassault Aviation SA or Airbus SE.
Depending on Canada's choice for the
permanent fleet, this could result in the Royal Canadian Air Force operating
two different kinds of modern jets at the same time, a prospect that did not
worry Vance.
"Why is it so odd that the RCAF would be
operating two fleets?" he said. "We used to operate three, four
fleets."
Canada says the 88 new planes must be
interoperable with those used by allies such as the United States. The
importance of working seamlessly with the Americans means Canada is likely to
buy U.S. jets for the permanent fleet, people familiar with the matter have
previously told Reuters.
Vance said this was not a fair assumption.
Canada on Wednesday announced a major
increase in defense spending after Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said the
nation would have to play a larger global role as the United States retreats.
Vance said Canada's close military ties with
the United States would remain intact.
"Our relationship is incredibly tight,
necessarily so and usefully so," he said, "and it stays that
way."
(Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by
Denny Thomas and Lisa Von Ahn)
Original post: reuters.com
So is the interim fighter going to be Rafale or Typhoon?
Related post:
Dassault Rafale: Details
Eurofighter Typhoon: Details
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