CF-18 Hornet
Thanks To Some Questionable Planning, Canada
Will Fly the Same F-18 Jets for 50 Years
Ottawa will pick a successor to take over in
2032. Maybe. Spoiler: It’s almost certainly the F-35.
By Kyle Mizokami
Jan 31, 2018
Canada plans to keep flying its fleet of F/A-18A Hornet
fighters into the early 2030s, by which time the oldest of these planes will be
more than a half-century old by retirement, which would make them some of the
oldest fighters in the industrialized world. Known as CF-18s in Canadian
service, the jets were delivered in the early 1980s and are Ottawa’s only
fighter jets.
According to the National Post, Canada
will select a new fighter in 2022 to enter service in 2032.
The current government in Ottawa is dead-set against buying the F-35 Joint
Strike Fighter, but because of their own decision to kick the can down the
road, they may be forced to choose it. Although aircraft such as the F/A-18E/F
Super Hornet and F-15 Eagle may still be production, by the early 2020s the
only fighter truly “future proofed” will be the F-35.
Canada purchased 138 Hornets in the early 1980s to patrol
the country’s vast airspace and fulfill NATO obligations. Although the planes
never saw combat against the Soviet Union, they have participated in the 1991
Persian Gulf War, combat operations in the Balkans in the 1990s, the 2011 Libya
intervention, and the war against the Islamic State. It’s safe to say that
Canada got its money’s worth from the fighter jets.
In 1997, when the planes were only an average of 15 years
old, Canada moved to become a multinational partner in the Joint Strike Fighter
program. Although Ottawa had not officially selected the F-35 as the
replacement for the CF-18, it wanted to get in on the ground floor so that it
could acquire the jets more quickly if Canada decided to pull the trigger.
Canada spent about $373 million to remain a partner without technically
ordering a single plane.
In 2010, the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper
announced the planned purchase of 65 F-35s without an open competition. The
lack of competition, the cost of the plane, and the F-35’s much-publicized
problems irked many. When current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau came to power
in 2015, he did so on a promise to cancel the order and purchase more
cost-effective aircraft. The 18-year plan to buy the F-35 came to nothing.
Under the original plan as
outlined by Defense Industry Daily, Canada’s first F-35s would have become
operational this year. Now, the Trudeau government says the CF-18 will fly on
without a replacement until 2032. According to the National
Post, Canada has set aside $405 million to purchase 18 Royal Australian
Air Force F/A-18 Hornets that are virtually identical to Canada’s. For its
part, Australia declared these old jets to be surplus, replacing them
with...the F-35.
If this sounds like a last-ditch plan, you should know
that it is. Another plan to purchase a handful of F/A-18 Super Hornets fell
through when the manufacturer, Boeing, accused Canada of subsidizing its
competitor Bombardier in the civil aviation market. Boeing not only lost
the trade dispute but also fell out of favor with the Canadian
government, which killed
the Super Hornet deal.
It's too bad. The Super Hornet was a good pick for
Canada. Royal Canadian Air Force pilots and maintainers could smoothly
transition from Hornet to Super Hornet, and much of the equipment, particularly
bombs and missiles, could be recycled. It would also be interoperable with U.S.
forces, which would almost certainly be a part of any campaign that involves
Canadian fighters. Unfortunately, it’s just not happening.
All of this makes you wonder: If Canada needs new
fighters now, why doesn’t it just buy the F-35 (or any other new fighter) now?
It’s not like some new, magical fighter plane will appear between 2018 and 2022
to solve all of Canada’s problems.
It’s not all bad news, though: a new government in Ottawa
could accelerate new fighter plans or make nice with Boeing. Furthermore, the
longer Canada waits, the cheaper the F-35 gets, both in aircraft and
maintenance costs.
Original post: popularmechanics.com
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CF-18 Hornet: Details
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