"We will purchase the F-35. We’re on record. We’re part of the crusade. We’re not backing down."
—Julian Fantino, associate minister of national defence, Fort Worth, Texas, Nov. 8, 2011.
Julian Fantino brings clarity and purpose to his new role as associate minister of national defence.
Thanks to the introduction of faith-based procurement, the Harper government can now ignore the complexities and inefficiencies of design specifications, equipment testing, contract tendering, specified industrial regional benefits, etc.
From now on, decisions on new equipment for the Canadian Forces will be divinely ordained, and channelled to Canadians through Mr. Fantino’s divine connections.
Last week, we published an article about the F-35 Lightning II, in the peer-reviewed Canadian Foreign Policy Journal. Our analysis sought to fill the gap created by the Harper government’s refusal to make public the “statement of operational requirements” prepared by the Department of National Defence.
In the article, we tracked the ongoing problems with the F-35 program, including long delays, escalating costs, and reduced orders from other countries. We compared the capabilities of the F-35 against proven and less-expensive alternate aircraft such as the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and the F-15 E/F Strike Eagle.
We reviewed some of the geopolitical developments—including the integration of Russia into the global economy—that reduce the risks the F-35 was designed to address. And we considered the possible impact of rapid technological developments in unmanned aerial vehicles on the long-term efficacy of piloted fighter planes.
We also put forward a plan B that entails purchasing a small number of Super Hornets or Strike Eagles so as to buy Canada time while the uncertainties of the F-35 program are resolved.
Instead of engaging with our analysis, Mr. Fantino told the House of Commons that we are “critical of everything that is holy and decent” about the government’s defence procurement efforts.
As the quotation at the beginning of this article illustrates, this is the second time that Mr. Fantino has referred publicly and explicitly to the divine nature of his new portfolio.
God’s interest in fighter jets was, to say the least, an unexpected revelation for us.
We are, of course, saddened that our research and analysis was for naught. We thought it mattered that our current CF-18s have far greater range and speed than F-35s. That they, and the Super Hornets and Strike Eagles, have two engines as compared to the F-35’s one engine, and are therefore better suited for deployment in remote regions such as the Arctic. That stealth aircraft have far lower mission capable rates than non-stealth aircraft and, as a result, much higher maintenance costs.
We are saddened to learn that Australia has, by implication, made a serious mistake in deciding to acquire 24 Super Hornets while it reassesses its commitment to the F-35 program. That Turkey and the UK were wrong to reduce the number of F-35s they have committed to buying. That United States Senator John McCain was wrong to call on the US government to consider alternatives.
We are, however, delighted that Canada will still pay just $75 million for each individual F-35 aircraft, which is less than half of what other countries will pay. Indeed, the US Government Accountability Office last year estimated the cost to be $156 million per plane.
Presumably God will instruct a cash-strapped US Congress to provide Canada with what would, in effect, be a multi-billion dollar subsidy.
Or is the Canadian government, perhaps, buying only partial planes, and proceeding from there on a wing and a prayer?
Being responsive and adaptive researchers, we’ve put aside the books and journals on aircraft capabilities, geopolitics and military history, and have started re-reading the Bible. (Mr. Fantino must have an updated version of the Holy Book, for we couldn’t find the Gospels of Lockheed Martin or anything about fighter jets in the old editions.)
Then it occurred to us that cows, and other things, are sometimes referred to as holy. Especially by people, like Mr. Fantino, who are prone to missteps.
Original Article
Source: embassy
Author: Michael Byers
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