August 2, 2018 | Local, Aerospace

Federal auditor general to dive into contentious fighter-jet 'capability gap'

Study will also look at how Canada will meet its 'obligations as it transitions to a new fighter fleet'

Lee Berthiaume

Canada's auditor general has started to dig into one of the Trudeau government's most contentious claims, upon which rests the fate of hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars: that the country is facing an urgent shortage of fighter jets.

The claim was first made in November 2016 when the Liberals announced that Canada didn't have enough fighter jets to defend North America and simultaneously meet the country's NATO commitments, and that a stopgap was urgently needed until the entire CF-18 fleet could be replaced.

The government originally planned to buy 18 interim Super Hornets from Boeing for $6.4 billion before the deal was scuttled late last year in favour of buying 25 used jets from Australia for $500 million.

But critics, including opposition parties and former air force commanders, accuse the government of fabricating an urgent "capability gap" — as the shortfall is known — by changing the military's requirements to avoid having to buy the F-35 stealth fighter.

Auditor general Michael Ferguson is now scrutinizing this "capability gap" as part of an overall fighter-jet review, according to an internal memo written by officials at the federal procurement department and obtained by The Canadian Press through access to information legislation.

The memo to Public Services and Procurement Canada deputy minister Marie Lemay references a meeting with Ferguson's staff in December in which they laid out the objectives of their audit.

Full article: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/auditor-general-fighter-jets-1.4763444

On the same subject

October 26, 2022 | Local, Naval

The Royal Canadian Navy commissions HMCS Margaret Brooke
October 26, 2022 – Halifax, N.S. – Department of National Defence / Canadian Armed Forces Media are invited to attend the commissioning ceremony of His Majesty's Canadian Ship (HMCS) Margaret Brooke in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on October 28. This event is the official welcome into active naval service for HMCS Margaret Brooke, the second Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship delivered under the National Shipbuilding Strategy. WHEN: Friday, October 28, 2022 at 1:00 p.m. (Atlantic) WHERE: Jetty NJ, HMC Dockyard, Halifax, N.S. WHAT: Military leadership and civilian dignitaries will commission HMCS Margaret Brooke into the RCN Fleet. Commander Nicole Robichaud, Commanding Officer and members of the ship's company, will be available for interviews following the ceremony. Notes to editor / news director: All media interested in attending are asked to contact Lieutenant Commander Brian Owens, Senior Public Affairs Officer, Maritime Forces Atlantic Public Affairs at 902-401-5529, or by email at brian.owens@forces.gc.ca. Media are requested to arrive at Admiral's Gate, HMC Dockyard, with photo identification no later than 12:30 p.m. (Atlantic) where they will be greeted and escorted to the site to cover the event. The ceremony will also be live streamed via the Royal Canadian Navy Facebook page at Royal Canadian Navy Facebook. https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/news/2022/10/the-royal-canadian-navy-commissions-hmcs-margaret-brooke.html
June 7, 2019 | Local, Land

Électrification des camions lourds: Effenco débarque à Paris pour conquérir l’Europe
MONTRÉAL | L'entreprise montréalaise Effenco, qui se spécialise dans l'électrification des camions lourds, s'installe en France afin de partir à la conquête du marché européen. C'est un contrat de 3 millions $ signé au début de 2019 avec Derichebourg Environnement qui a fait croître la demande pour les solutions d'Effenco sur le vieux continent. Cette entreprise internationale a décidé d'opter pour la technologie hybride électrique Active Stop-Start d'Effenco afin d'équiper ses camions à benne affectés à de nouveaux contrats de collecte dans la Ville Lumière. «À la suite de l'entente avec Derichebourg, nous avons reçu de nombreuses expressions d'intérêt et conclu des ententes additionnelles avec des flottes et manufacturiers de camions en Norvège, en Italie, en Suisse ainsi qu'en Espagne», a indiqué David Arsenault, président et cofondateur d'Effenco, par communiqué. «Plusieurs centaines d'unités seront ainsi progressivement déployées dans différentes villes européennes au cours des deux prochaines années, a ajouté l'homme d'affaires. Nous sommes confiants que nos ventes à l'exportation atteindront d'ici trois ans quelque 100 millions $.» La technologie hybride électrique d'Effenco permet de réduire de 30 % les émissions de gaz à effet de serre des camions, qui sont également plus silencieux, un avantage en milieu densément peuplé. https://www.journaldequebec.com/2019/06/06/electrification-des-camions-lourds-effenco-debarque-a-paris-pour-conquerir-leurope
January 18, 2021 | Local, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

$20M in funding available for innovative prototypes
Testing Stream Now Open Our Testing Stream is now accepting applications. We have $20M in funding to test your late-stage, pre-commercial innovations in real-life settings with government partners. You could receive up to $550k to test your standard (non-military) innovation, or up to $1.15M to test your military innovation. This Testing Stream call for proposals closes February 5th, 2021 at 14:00 EST. Learn more Who is eligible? We are looking for innovative products and services at technology readiness levels (TRL) 7-9. We have launched two concurrent calls for proposals for: Canadian SMEs Non-SMEs: Sole proprietor, individual, large business, not-for profit, or an academic institution Read all eligibility requirements here. Direct sales for SMEs We are introducing a new program feature for SMEs! SMEs who complete an initial testing contract may be eligible to qualify for our innovation source list. SMES who qualify for our innovation source list will: be eligible to sell to the Government of Canada without further competition for 3 years be eligible for additional contracts (*to a maximum of $8M per contract) Visit our website for all details about the Testing Stream calls for proposals.

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