Aéro Montréal recrute : Gestionnaire de projets, Cybersécurité et Défense & Sécurité

On the same subject

• 

  March 29, 2019 | Local, Naval

  Work on HMCS Corner Brook could stretch out to 2021, DND confirms

  DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN HMCS Corner Brook's Extended Docking Work Period, or EDWP, is presently underway in Esquimalt, BC and was scheduled to be completed in 2020. But an assessment conducted by the contractor, Babcock Canada Inc., indicates that the work could take longer than expected, the Department of National Defence confirmed to Postmedia. DND spokeswoman Ashley Lemire said given the complex and lengthy nature of submarine EDWPs, periodic assessments are routinely undertaken by Babcock Canada to ensure that the schedule remains achievable. “The most recent schedule assessment took into account the remaining work, and an updated assessment of the potential risk factors, to produce a probabilistic assessment of the completion date that showed that the EDWP could continue into 2021 if a number of the risks materialized,” Lemire noted in an email. The Canadian government and Babcock will now undertake a review of all risks to determine how those can be avoided and or mitigated, she added. They will also review the remaining items still to be done to ensure that only essential work has been scheduled. “This necessary process generally results in the schedule coming back towards the baseline and the process must be left to unfold to determine if a full return to baseline can be achieved,” Lemire added. If the work on Corner Brook slips into 2021, it could have an impact on the work periods for other submarines to follow. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/work-on-hmcs-corner-brook-could-stretch-out-to-2021-dnd-confirms

• 

  June 25, 2020 | Local, Aerospace, Naval

  Canada Mimics Marine Corps Makeover For F/A-18C/D Fleet

  Steve Trimble As Canada's CF-18 fleet enters an unexpected fourth decade of service, the details of a nearly $1 billion upgrade package are settled. With operators in Europe, the Middle East and Asia looking on, an upgrade package approved by the State Department on June 16 for up to 36 Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) F/A-18C/Ds cements a new configuration aimed at keeping the Boeing-made jets in service decades beyond their planned retirement dates. A group of Raytheon-made sensors and weapons—APG-79(v)4 active, electronically scanned array radars, AIM-9X Block II air-to-air missiles and AGM-154C Joint Standoff Weapons—will be included in the RCAF's newly defined Phase 2 upgrade to help keep a subset of the 94-member CF-18 fleet operating into the 2030s. The State Department previously cleared Canada to acquire 32 AIM-120D advanced medium-range air-to-air missiles for the CF-18. The package, defined in a Defense Security Cooperation Agency notification to Congress on June 16, offers few surprises. The Phase 2 Hornet Extension Program will be closely aligned with a U.S. Marine Corps initiative to keep at least two squadrons of F/A-18C/Ds in service beyond 2029, as both the Marines and the RCAF have waited longer than expected for a replacement jet to arrive. The U.S. Navy tipped the radar selection for the RCAF in a June 11 presolicitation notice that specified the APG-79(v)4, showing an intent to prevent Northrop Grumman from offering the APG-83 for the Canadian program. The Marines evaluated the APG-83 and the APG-79 two years ago, but selected the latter as the successor to the Raytheon APG-73 for the “classic” Hornet fleet. “Partnering with the [Marines], who are completing the same radar upgrade, will enable the introduction of this new capability faster, more efficiently and at reduced cost for both services,” the Canadian Department of National Defense (DND) tells Aviation Week in a statement. The upgrades by the Canadians and the U.S. Marines are driven by the same issue. A delayed delivery schedule for the Lockheed Martin F-35B has forced the Marines to keep a fleet of Legacy F/A-18s in service for a decade longer than planned. The Canadian government's 11-year-old pursuit of a CF-18 replacement (highlighted by failed attempts to acquire 65 Lockheed Martin F-35As in 2010 and an interim fleet of 18 Boeing F/A-18E/F aircraft in 2016) is still in competition mode, with a contract award for 88 fighters due in 2022. Three bidding teams—F/A-18E/F, F-35A and the Saab JAS 39 Gripen—must submit final bids by July 31, which includes a one-month delay to account for the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry. “These [CF-18] upgrades will provide a capability bridge until transition to a permanent replacement fighter,” the DND says. Canada's fighter delays have not been easy for the RCAF to manage. The current fleet, acquired in the early 1980s, was originally expected to be retired in the early 2000s. A retirement date in 2020 fell through as the government of former Prime Minister Stephen Harper stalled on signing the contract for the controversial F-35A selection. The new administration of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pushed the selection process to 2022. The CF-18 is now set for retirement in 2032. The situation is different in Finland. Although the Finnish Air Force operates the youngest fleet of F/A-18C/Ds, the head of the HX fighter competition has roundly rejected calls to extend their service life into the 2030s, saying even a few extra years of operations would cost at least €1.2 billion ($1.35 billion). The State Department cleared the RCAF to buy 50 infrared-guided AIM-9X Block II missiles, 38 APG-79(v)4 radars and 20 AGM-154C glide bombs as part of an overall package worth $862 million. The bundle includes electronic equipment, tactical data and support. The CAD$1.3 billion ($960 million) CF-18 Hornet Enhancement Program is divided in two phases. Phase 1 updates all 94 aircraft, including 18 former Royal Australian Air Force F/A-18C/Ds acquired two years ago, with interoperability and regulatory upgrades, including a new GPS/international navigation system, Identification Friend or Foe transponder, Link 16 tactical radios, satellite communications, targeting pod modifications and improved helmets. https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/aircraft-propulsion/canada-mimics-marine-corps-makeover-fa-18cd-fleet

• 

  May 8, 2019 | Local, Aerospace

  US, Canada talks underway to decide if the F-35 will be pulled from Canada’s fighter competition

  By: David Pugliese VICTORIA, British Columbia — The U.S. is threatening to pull the F-35 from Canada's fighter jet competitionif the ally to the north doesn't change requirements for the winning bidder to stipulate specific industrial benefits for domestic firms. The U.S. government is arguing that since Canada is a partner in the F-35 program it cannot request guaranteed industrial benefits for its companies. Canada has pre-qualified four aircraft for its fighter jet project worth up to 19 billion Canadian dollars (U.S. $14 billion): the Lockheed Martin F-35, Boeing Super Hornet, Eurofighter Typhoon and the Saab Gripen. The Canadian government plans to purchase 88 new jets to replace its aging CF-18 fighter aircraft fleet. Canada will require that a robust package of guaranteed industrial benefits or offsets be provided by the winning bidder, government officials have said. But the U.S. government has objected to that, as Canada is still a partner in the F-35 program, which does not guarantee participating nations a set number of contracts. Work on the F-35 program is based on best value and price. U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Mathias Winter, program executive officer for the Joint Strike Fighter, wrote Canadian procurement officials Dec. 18, 2018, pointing out that the F-35 agreement prohibits partners from imposing requirements for industrial benefits. “We cannot participate in an offer of the F-35 weapon system where requirements do not align with the F-35 Partnership," he noted in his letter. Winter's letter was leaked this week to defencs analysts and the Canadian journalists. The letter has prompted ongoing discussions between Canadian and U.S. procurement officials in an effort to work out some kind of solution, multiple industry and government sources told Defense News. But the Canadian government will also respect any decision by the U.S. to not bid the F-35 if an agreement can't be reached, sources added. The Canadian government is putting the final touches on the bid requirements for new fighter jet project. That bid package is expected to be issued sometime this year. Asked about the U.S. ultimatum, Ashley Michnowski, spokeswoman for Procurement Minister Carla Qualtrough, said feedback from aircraft suppliers is continuing to be collected by the Canadian government. That process has yet to be finished and a final request for bids is expected to be released soon, she added. Michnowski said Canada continues to be a member of the Joint Strike Fighter program, giving the country “the option to buy aircraft through the program, should the F-35 be successful in the competitive process for the future fleet.” Lockheed Martin Canada noted in a statement that Canadian firms have earned more than $1.2 billion in work on the program, resulting in hundreds of domestic jobs. “We continue to provide our feedback to the U.S. government, which leads all government-to-government discussions related to the Canadian fighter replacement competition,” the statement added. Email: dpugliese@defensenews.com https://www.defensenews.com/air/2019/05/08/us-canada-talks-underway-to-decide-if-the-f-35-will-be-pulled-from-canadas-fighter-competition/