October 21, 2018 | Local, Naval
OTTAWA — The federal government is giving U.S. defence giant Lockheed Martin the first crack at inking a contract to design Canada's $60-billion fleet of new warships.
Government officials say Lockheed's proposed design beat out two rival submissions in what has been a long and extremely sensitive competition to design replacements for the navy's entire frigate and destroyer fleets.
While the announcement marked the start of an important new phase in the largest and most expensive military purchase in Canadian history, it could also prove to be extremely controversial as some had questioned why the bid was allowed in the first place.
Still, Lockheed executives may not be popping the champagne just yet. Negotiators for both sides as well as Halifax-based Irving Shipbuilding, which will actually build the vessels, must now work out details — including the final cost — before an actual contract is awarded.
The stakes will be high for both sides, with hundreds of millions of dollars in play as well as pressure to make up for lost time as numerous delays — including in the design competition — have pushed the schedule for construction.
Irving has warned that it could be forced to lay off hundreds of employees if work on the warships is not ready to start by the time it finishes building the navy's new Arctic patrol ships in 2021 or 2022.
The Defence Department's head of military procurement, Patrick Finn, acknowledged the need for urgency.
But he also noted the need for care as whatever decisions are taken during the negotiations could have ramifications on the navy and taxpayers for decades.
“So it behooves us to stop and make sure we do the final checks in all of the areas,” Finn said this week in an interview.
Lockheed's victory is likely to be contentious as the federal government had originally said it wanted a “mature design,” which was widely interpreted as meaning a vessel that has already been built and used by another navy.
But the Type 26 frigate, upon which Lockheed's proposal is based, is only now being built by the British government and has not been used on operations.
The federal government has reserved the right to walk away from the talks — if Lockheed drives too hard a bargain — and negotiate with the second-place bidder, which was not identified. However, officials hope that won't be necessary and a contract will be signed this winter.
“We have notional time frames allocated,” said Andre Fillion, who oversees military and naval projects with Public Services and Procurement Canada.
“And should everything go according to plan, we're looking at winter 2019 for the award of the contract. If it doesn't go according to plan, then we go to Plan B — and obviously that would take longer.”
Lockheed's design was up against a pitch by U.S.-based defence company Alion, which proposed a design based on a Dutch frigate, and Spanish firm Navantia's proposal, which was modelled on a frigate used by the Spanish navy.
One of the big questions heading into the negotiations will be how much of Lockheed's design will need to be changed to reflect the navy's needs and how much the navy will have to shift its requirements because changing the design will take more time and money.
Government negotiators are also facing a potential battle over the amount of intellectual property that Lockheed will be required to hand over, which Ottawa wants so it can operate and maintain the vessels on its own after they are built.
Companies had originally been told that the winner would be required to turn over the full blueprints, but after significant resistance the two sides agreed the matter would be negotiated before a contract is awarded.
Officials remain focused on getting “the intellectual property access and rights that we need to not only build the ship but also to operate and maintain it for its entire life cycle,” Fillion said.
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https://ipolitics.ca/2018/10/19/feds-give-lockheed-martin-first-shot-at-60-billion-warship-contract/
November 30, 2023 | Local, Aerospace
Today, the Government of Canada will give an update on work to provide the Canadian Armed Forces with the tools that they need to do their jobs, and protect Canadians in a changing world.
January 2, 2020 | Local, Aerospace, Naval, Security
DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN The month of December saw movement on two major defence and security related equipment programs. The RCAF announced it accepted the first Fixed Wing Search and Rescue aircraft from Airbus even as the military tried to work out issues with technical manuals for the C-295 plane. “We will continue to work with Airbus to ensure the acceptability of remaining work, including revision of technical manuals, completing training for the initial RCAF crews and conducting initial operational testing and evaluation in Spain in the first half of 2020,” explained Department of National Defence spokesman Jessica Lamirande. “The aircraft will be flying in Spain by the spring of 2020 with the completion of qualification work and training for RCAF personnel. It will only fly in Canada when it arrives in mid-2020.” Seaspan Shipyards announced Dec. 10 that it completed the delivery of CCGS Capt. Jacques Cartier, the Canadian Coast Guard's newest Offshore Fisheries Science Vessel or OFSV. It is the second OFSV delivered by Seaspan, which was her sister ship, the CCGS Sir John Franklin. These two ships are the first large vessels delivered under the National Shipbuilding Strategy. More than 600 Canadian firms were involved in the project, reported Esprit de Corps military magazine. Equipped to support Fisheries and Ocean scientists in the collection and analysis of data on Canada's marine ecosystems and the impacts of climate change, the vessel features a full suite of modern systems, including high-tech fishing trawls and four science labs — a wet lab, a dry lab, an ocean lab and a control lab, Seaspan noted. The OFSV also has a deployable drop keel, loaded with a wide array of sensors to support the vessel's research mandate. The CCGS Capt. Jacques Cartier will also support search and rescue operations and environmental response. A third OFSV under construction at Seaspan Shipyards is structurally complete and on schedule to be delivered in August 2020, Seaspan added. In the meantime, Collins Aerospace Systems used the Dubai Air Show to highlight the fact that the new C-295 aircraft come equipped with the firm's state-of-the-art Pro Line Fusion flight deck, Esprit de Corps military magazine reported. That will significantly advance the capabilities of C-295 operators, according to Collins Aerospace Systems. The selection marks the first fixed-wing search and rescue platform to include Pro Line Fusion among its standard equipment. The Pro Line Fusion flight deck designed for the C-295 includes Collins touchscreen displays to provide a more intuitive interface for pilots to interact and customize their information on the flight deck; night-vision goggle capability; Head-Up Displays that enable the pilot to keep their eyes up for enhanced situational awareness; Enhanced Vision System (EVS) sensor that allows pilots to see in low-visibility conditions; overlaid weather radar that shows a graphical depiction of weather along the flight plan for easy viewing; Integrated Terrain Awareness and Warning System that enables high-resolution 3D obstacle depiction and enhances mission safety, and fully integrated Mission Flight Management Systems supporting Search and Rescue patterns, Computed Air Release Points and High Altitude Release Points. L3Harris Technologies delivered two F/A-18 Hornet aircraft to NASA in November after successfully completing depot-level modifications and repair work. The two aircraft were delivered to NASA by L3Harris Canadian Fighter Center of Excellence in Quebec. Vertex Aerospace LLC selected L3Harris to work on the NASA F/A-18 Hornet aircraft in 2018. As part of the scheduled maintenance work, L3Harris addressed structural modifications, while maximizing the availability of the aircraft for operational use. The work involved structural modifications to eliminate flight and landing restrictions. L3Harris has specialized in developing and implementing F/A-18 structural modification and life extension solutions, having already completed structural programs for the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Royal Australian Air Force, and assisting other F/A-18 users, including the Swiss Air Force, the Finnish Air Force, and the U.S. Navy. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/industry-updates-new-search-and-rescue-aircraft-to-fly-in-canada-in-mid-2020-second-offshore-fisheries-science-vessel-delivered
October 16, 2023 | Local, Land
“It may be that we completely break the [Air Force Specialty Code] structure," said Lt. Gen. Caroline Miller, the service's personnel chief.