Canada To Commence Fighter Procurement Talks At Farnborough Air Show

Canadian officials will meet with potential suppliers of fighter aircraft and government representatives at the Farnborough Airshow next as the first step in finding a modern fighter aircraft for the country’s air force.

Over the summer, the Government of Canada will consult allied Governments and interested potential suppliers in a number of ways including one-on-one meetings, questionnaires, and site-visits. The information received will be integral to shaping Canada’s way forward on this file.

Conducting an early consultation at the front-end of a procurement process will also provide the Government with the information necessary to assess risks and analyze options for the replacement of Canada’s fleet of CF-18s.

The Government will be seeking information on issues such as costs, delivery times, interoperability with NORAD, readiness, and the potential benefits for the Canadian economy.

Specific information being sought includes up-to-date information on capabilities, readiness, availability, infrastructure compatibility, acquisition costs, sustainment/maintenance, life-cycle costs and economic benefits.  

In addition, officials will be meeting with allies regarding their user experiences with aircraft options and their capabilities, experience with potential aircraft suppliers, and lessons learned through recent replacement process and/or decisions. Canada anticipates being able to use these discussions to further validate information received from industry.

According to the acquisition programme for the CF-18, the Canadian government plans to buy 65 A-models estimated to cost $45.8 billion over a 42-year life cycle, including $9 billion for aircraft acquisition.

Leading into the election in 2015, the now Liberal government led by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had ditched a plan to acquire 65 Lockheed Martin F-35As to replace CF-18s, and instead announced “immediate” launch of an open fighter competition.

CF-18s have conducted 1,221 sorties since joining the air campaign in 2014, the government disclosed on 19 December. The CC-150T Polaris has made 329 flights and delivered approximately 900t of cargo in support of Operation Impact, while the CP-140 Aurora has conducted 356 reconnaissance missions.