Thursday 14 December 2017

Canada Starts Fighter Competition Process, Aims for 2025 Delivery

Gripen E


By S.L. Fuller | December 13, 2017

Canada has reaffirmed it’s not interested in sole-sourcing Boeing F/A-18s for its air force by opening up the competition to everyone. The government said Wednesday it is holding an “open and transparent competition” to replace its fighter jet fleet.

“As outlined in the Strong, Secure, Engaged defense policy, Canada will purchase 88 advanced fighter aircraft,” said Public Services and Procurement Canada. “This is the most significant investment in the Royal Canadian Air Force in more than 30 years and is essential for protecting the safety and security of Canadians and meeting international defense obligations.”

Public Services and Procurement also said that the Industrial and Technological Benefits Policy would apply to this procurement, meaning the winning bidder would be required to make investments in Canada equal to the value of the contract.

Now that the process has officially started, Canada is set to begin by establishing a list of suppliers that would comprise foreign governments and manufacturers that have demonstrated their ability to meet Canada's needs, as defined in the Suppliers List invitation, Public Services and Procurement Canada said. All companies are welcome to participate.

Planning and stakeholder engagement would take place throughout the next two years. The contract award is expected to occur in 2022; first delivery is scheduled for 2025. Before the Strong, Secure, Engaged policy, Canada had originally planned to procure 65 new aircraft.

In the mean time, Canada is pursuing the purchase of 18 used jets from Australia to supplement its current aging fleet. This follows unsuccessful discussion with Boeing to purchase new F/A-18s. News reports said the Australian aircraft would be F-18s, which is the same aircraft Canada is now trying to replace. A Reuters report said that Canada was looking to publish official requirements for the new fighter in early 2019.

On the Canadian Interim Fighter Capability Project and free and fair competition, Boeing said:

"We have read reports that the government of Canada is choosing to purchase used F/A-18 Classic Hornets from the Royal Australian Air Force in lieu of new Super Hornet fighter jets.

“The Boeing Company respects the Canadian government’s decision and applauds the government’s continued use of a two-engine fighter solution, which is a critical part of their northern Arctic border defense, NORAD cooperation and coast-to-coast-to-coast security.

“Although we will not have the opportunity to grow our supply base, industrial partnerships and jobs in Canada the way we would if Canada purchased new Super Hornets, we will continue to look to find productive ways to work together in the future. Boeing is fortunate to have an outstanding 100 years of partnership with Canada, which had culminated in our $4 billion annual economic impact in Canada, and we look forward to partnering for the next 100 years.”

Original post: aviationtoday.com


Tuesday’s announcement is the latest chapter in the protracted saga of Canada’s search for a replacement for CF-18 fighter jets that have recently seen action in the skies over Libya, Iraq and Syria.

The previous Conservative government had committed Canada to buying the F-35 stealth fighter but backed off that promise amid mounting concerns over the aircraft’s rising costs and reported technical issues.

Some experts also expressed concerns that despite its stealth capabilities, the single engine F-35 was less resilient than some of its competitors, especially when operating in the harsh Arctic environment in Canada’s north.

Canada, however, still remains a partner in the F-35 program and Canadian firms are actively involved in supplying equipment and parts to the stealth fighter.

But buying F-35 jets produced by Boeing’s rival Lockheed Martin would potentially be embarrassing for the Liberals. During the election campaign in 2015, Trudeau vowed his government would never buy the F-35.

However, retired Gen. Tom Lawson, who served as Canada’s chief of defence staff under former Prime Minister Stephen Harper, said with Tuesday’s announcement the Liberals bought themselves a lot of time.

“I think for the government that is a very useful thing, especially because some Canadians will remember that they said they would never purchase the F-35,” said Lawson, a former fighter pilot. “And with this process it’s very likely that F-35 will win whatever competition process is in place.”

Other potential bidders include Dassault with its Rafale fighter jet, Eurofighter with its Typhoon aircraft and Saab with Gripen, Lawson said.

“All of those aircraft are getting used to losing international competitions to F-35 and for very good reason, all of them are 10 to 15 or 20 years old and it’s very tough to compete your aircraft against the F-35,” Lawson said. “The F-35 is just blossoming through its development stage and into part of the envelope years that could last 20, 30, 40 years where it’s going to be the fighter around the world.” Source: rcinet.ca


The last paragraph is not actually true as the Gripen E/F is practically new and would have capabilities very close to the F-35 except for the stealth but way cheaper to maintain and operate and with some characteristics which exceeds that of the F-35 at less than half the price. 


Related articles:


Rafale Multirole Fighter: Details

Eurofighter Typhoon: Details

Saab Gripen E/F: Details

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