Defense officials put technology at center of AUKUS summit

On the same subject

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  December 7, 2022 | Local, Naval

  CCGS Hudson to be responsibly deconstructed

  Dartmouth, Nova Scotia - Following an illustrious 59 years of service supporting ocean science work in Canada and around the world, the CCGS Hudson is taking its final voyage and is set for deconstruction and environmentally-responsible disposal. On November 28, 2022, after an open competitive process, Public Services and Procurement Canada, on behalf of the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG), awarded the contract for the vessel’s deconstruction to Antigonish-based marine contracting company R.J. MacIsaac Construction Ltd (RJMI). The cost for this environmentally-responsible disposal contract is $1.6 million. In the coming weeks, the Canadian Coast Guard will sign over the care and custody of the decommissioned vessel to RJMI. The vessel will then be towed from the Bedford Institute of Oceanography in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia to a temporary storage site in Halifax Harbour for a few months. In Spring 2023, RJMI will tow the vessel to their Sheet Harbour facility where the hazardous material remediation and disposal process will be performed. By Fall 2023, the vessel will be removed from water and the hull and superstructure will be disassembled. The overall project is expected to be completed by the end of Fall 2023. RJMI will ensure that any steel, stainless steel, aluminum, or other recyclable materials onboard the vessel are recycled while non-recyclable materials are disposed of in an environmentally-responsible manner, in compliance with federal, provincial, and municipal regulations. As well, the contractor will salvage and return the CCGS Hudson’s hull transducers and propellers to the CCG.  Quotes “Today is a bittersweet day as the Canadian Coast Guard responsibly disposes of the CCGS Hudson, a trailblazing vessel that has served Canadians and Canadian scientists for nearly 60 years. The Canadian Coast Guard taking this step serves as a reminder to all vessel owners across the country to have a plan to dispose of their ships in an environmentally responsible way to protect our lands and oceans.” The Honourable Joyce Murray, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard "For over half a century, the CCGS Hudson has proudly served our country. As this vessel retires, I’m thrilled to see a local company in Sheet Harbour receive the contract to deconstruct the vessel which will create jobs in Sheet Harbour and support the local economy." The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship “As we mark the final chapter of CCGS Hudson’s illustrious history, I’m reminded of all of the Canadian Coast Guard personnel that sailed on the ship and left their mark on Canadian ocean science. I am particularly proud that some of the CCGS Hudson’s history will be preserved as a reminder to celebrate the past as we navigate the future in oceanographic science missions.” Mario Pelletier, Commissioner of the Canadian Coast Guard Quick facts Prior to the handover of the ship to R.J. MacIsaac Construction Ltd., Canadian Coast Guard personnel removed a number of items including the ship’s bell, the wheel, chronometer, anchors, and photographs from the CCGS Hudson which are currently being safely stored. The historic items will be archived or donated to maritime museums, installed on the future Offshore Oceanographic Science Vessel currently under construction at Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyard, installed on other CCG vessels where appropriate, or placed as historical decorative pieces at departmental sites. The CCGS Hudson was a key platform for Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s oceanographic science program. The yet to be named Offshore Oceanographic and Science Vessel, isn’t expected to be delivered until 2025. The Canadian Coast Guard continues to work closely with Fisheries and Oceans Canada to mitigate the impacts on science programming. The future Offshore Oceanographic and Science Vessel is being built as part of the Government of Canada’s National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS).  The Offshore Oceanographic Science Vessel (OOSV), the second class of Canadian Coast Guard vessels being built by Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyards, is a critical step in the renewal of the Coast Guard Fleet. The OOSV will support the Government of Canada’s next 30 plus years of cutting edge scientific research that will help inform decisions about protecting our fisheries, oceans and coastal areas.  https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-coast-guard/news/2022/12/ccgs-hudson-to-be-responsibly-deconstructed.html

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  November 5, 2023 | Local, Aerospace

  German air chief urges haste in fielding strike, utility drones

  The Luftwaffe wants so-called remote carriers and a dedicated combat drone earlier than the timing of the Future Combat Air System envisions.

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  December 7, 2018 | Local, Aerospace

  Canadian military to contract out some maintenance work on aging CF-18s to free up front line technicians

  LEE BERTHIAUME OTTAWA THE CANADIAN PRESS PUBLISHED DECEMBER 3, 2018UPDATED DECEMBER 3, 2018 The Canadian military is looking to contract out some maintenance work on the country's aging CF-18 fighter jets as well as training to help address a shortage of experienced technicians. Defence officials revealed the plan during a Commons committee meeting on Monday, in which they also defended the time needed to pick a new jet for the air force and faced calls to reveal how much it will cost to upgrade the CF-18s' combat systems. The technician shortage was first revealed in an explosive auditor general's report last month in which the watchdog took aim at the Liberals' plan to buy second-hand Australian jets by warning the air force needed more technicians and pilots – not planes. A number of measures are being introduced to address both shortfalls, air force commander Lt.-Gen. Al Meinzinger told the committee, including the contracting out of more involved maintenance that usually takes place away from the front lines as well as some tech training. The initiatives will free up about 200 experienced aircraft technicians so they can work directly on planes in the field and keep them flying, Meinzinger said, adding in an interview after the meeting that the move would not affect combat readiness. Initiatives are also being introduced to better support military families, which Meinzinger identified as a key contributing factor in why many pilots and technicians are leaving, while the air force is looking at a new training model to produce more pilots. Even with these measures, Meinzinger said he expected it to take between five and seven years to have a full complement of pilots and technicians in time to start transitioning from the CF-18s to new state-of-the-art replacements. “We're putting our shoulder to the wheel,” Meinzinger told The Canadian Press. “This is a top priority. But it's going to take some time, obviously.” Defence officials faced pointed questions from members of Parliament on both sides of the table during Monday's committee meeting about the length of time it is expected to take for those new replacements to be selected and delivered. A request for proposals will be released in the spring, with bids due in early 2020. Another full year has been set aside to evaluate those bids and another for negotiations with the winner. Delivery of the first aircraft is expected in 2025 and the last in 2031. The Defence Department's head of procurement, Patrick Finn, underscored the complexity of the $19-billion project, which has been plagued by delays and political mismanagement for more than a decade as Canada has sought to choose a new fighter. Those complexities include the usual challenges evaluating and negotiating the capabilities of each of the four aircraft that are expected to compete, Finn said, as well as the industrial benefits to Canada and intellectual-property rights. At the same time, he added, the process for actually purchasing each of the planes is different given, for example, that Canada is a member of the F-35 stealth fighter project while the U.S. government would need to officially sign off on buying Super Hornets. In fact, Finn said the government has only limited flexibility in its schedule given that most manufacturers can only start delivering aircraft three years after an order is made – though he remained confident that the timeline would be met. The length of time was nonetheless a clear concern to some committee members. Officials were also grilled over the cost of upgrading the CF-18s' sensors, weapons and defensive measures after the auditor general found $3-billion in planned investments over the next decade was only to keep them flying and did not include their combat systems. The Defence Department's top bureaucrat, deputy minister Jody Thomas, told the committee that an analysis is underway, which includes consulting with the U.S. and other allies, and that a plan is expected in the spring. But opposition members challenged Thomas when she suggested that the department would not be able to provide cost estimates to the committee before being presented to the government, saying even if it is a matter of security, they are entitled to the information. “A unilateral declaration by a deputy or anybody that a parliamentary committee cannot have information is unacceptable,” NDP MP David Christopherson said. “There needs to be one more step to pursue that so that question, which is entirely legitimate in my opinion, can be answered in a way that respects the security and defence issues but also upholds the right of Parliament to demand any information they so choose.” https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-plan-for-combat-upgrades-to-aging-cf-18s-expected-in-may-defence