Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
OTTAWA — The Tories have promised a complete and public review of the stealth fighter program and opened the door to potential competitors after a scathing report found defence officials twisted government rules, misled ministers and Parliament, and whitewashed cost overruns and delays in a determined effort to ensure Canada purchased the F-35 jet.
Auditor-General Michael Ferguson’s scathing assessment, released today, puts the military’s own cost estimates for Canada’s involvement at $25 billion — instead of the publicly stated $16 billion — and questions assertions that Canadian industry stands to benefit from $12 billion in contracts.
The Auditor-General’s report also says the F-35 was “clearly the fighter jet of choice” as early as 2006, and that officials intentionally played up the F-35’s stealth capabilities to sidestep established purchasing guidelines.
“National Defence did not exercise the diligence that would be expected in managing a $25-billion commitment,” Ferguson said. “It is important that a purchase of this size be managed rigorously and transparently.”
The report forced immediate changes to the handling of the fighter program: “Funding will remain frozen and Canada will not purchase new aircraft until further due diligence, oversight, and transparency is applied to the process of replacing the Canadian Forces’ aging CF-18 fleet,” Public Works Minister Rona Ambrose said after the release of the review.
Ferguson’s report says Canada initially joined the F-35 program in 1997 not with the intention of purchasing the stealth fighter, but to ensure Canadian industry could win contracts associated with developing and producing the fighter.
The Euro Fightercould be a possiblity... that.. Or the Dassault Rafale could also be in the running as an alternative to Replace the aging CF-18 Hornets.
Agreed the X-47B with Air-To-Air Refueling capability would be perfecrtfor patroling Canada's arctic for long periods of time and for NORAD Missions and still offer a bit of stealth capability if needed for future NATO Missions.....
I think Canada has no reason to own ANY advanced fighter jets. They should spend one tenth the money developing autonomous drones capable of hunting down all the current and likely future aircraft that might be used to attack Canada. They have absolutely no need for weapons that have long range capacity.
Maybe the canucks should design and build their own, yathink?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
