That may have significant bearing on whether the government chooses the F-35 as Canada’s next fighter because the stealth jet is incompatible with the Royal Canadian Air Force’s current air-to-air refuelling fleet.
Being able to refuel fighter aircraft in mid-air is a “necessity” for the Canadian military because of the country’s geography, reads a briefing note prepared for MacKay by senior air force officials and dated Sept. 25.
Without air-to-air refuelling capabilities, says the note obtained by Postmedia News, “the fighter fleet of the CF (Canadian Forces) would have very limited coverage of the Canadian Arctic as well as time on station.”
Time on station is the amount of time a fighter aircraft can remain in flight over a particular area, including as part of a patrol or reconnaissance mission.
MacKay was also told that the air force would not get the most out of its jets on other missions without refuelling capabilities.
The air force officers concluded that air-to-air refuelling capabilities “are deemed so critical” that the Canadian military “cannot consider” a new fighter jet without considering air-to-air refuelling capabilities to support it.
“It is clear that the requirement for an (air-to-air refuelling) capability must be closely linked” to the purchase of new fighter jets.
The officers went on to note that the F-35 is not compatible with Canada’s existing refuelling tankers — though all of its competitors are.
National Defence did not respond to questions Friday.
The military quietly revealed in December that it plans to rely on the U.S., other allies and private companies for air-to-air refuelling if the government purchases the F-35.
But many observers believed that was simply number juggling as part of an effort to keep the bill for purchasing 65 F-35s within the $9-billion envelope set aside by the Conservative government.
National Defence initially planned to spend $420 million of the $9 billion budgeted for purchasing the F-35s on Canadian-specific modifications such as making the country’s refuelling aircraft compatible with the stealth fighters.
(The full cost of the F-35s has been pegged at $45 billion, but only $9 billion of that is for actually buying the planes. The remaining $36 billion is for development, maintenance, operating costs and disposal when the aircraft reach the end of their useful life, expected around 2052.)
The Conservative government backtracked on its plan to purchase 65 F-35s last year following a scathing auditor general’s report and revelations the stealth aircraft would cost taxpayers more than $45 billion to own and operate.
It ordered bureaucrats to go back to potential competitors and ask them to fill in several questionnaires about their own fighter aircraft, including capabilities, costs and potential industrial benefits to Canada’s economy.
There are five possible contenders, including the Dassault Rafale, the Eurofighter Typhoon, the Saab Gripen, the Boeing Super Hornet and Lockheed Martin’s F-35.
Companies expect to hand in the final questionnaire around mid-summer, with officials putting all the options — including the pros and cons of continuing to operate the Royal Canadian Air Force’s aging CF-18 fighters — to cabinet in the fall.
Cabinet will then decide what course of action to take, including whether to go ahead with the F-35 purchase, hold an open competition or take some other action.
Original Article
Source: canada.com
Author: Lee Berthiaume
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