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Gen. Jonathan Vance said that despite speculation, there was never a plan in the works to deploy troops on a single UN operation. OTTAWA—Training foreign troops will be the “flagship” of Canada's newly announced peace operations strategy, says the country's top soldier, who concedes that elements of the plan still require months more work. Prime Minster Justin Trudeau on Wednesday took the wraps off his government's long-awaited effort to reengage with United Nations peace missions. Elements of the strategy include $15 million in funding to boost participation by women soldiers in UN operations; an initiative to end the recruitment of child soldiers; and the promise of Canadian personnel to assist with training. It also pledges up to six helicopters, two transport aircraft and a quick reaction force of up to 200 personnel to support UN missions. But apart from Trudeau's promise of a single transport aircraft for UN operations based in Uganda, the plan offered no details on possible deployments. Gen. Jonathan Vance, the chief of defence staff, said it would be “inappropriate” to say when those might start. “I'm not even going to hazard a guess on that one right now. Step number one is now to get into detailed planning with the UN and find out . . . the what, the where and the when,” he said in an interview. This week's announcement was months in the making. The Liberals pledged in the 2015 election to “recommit” to UN peace operations, in part by providing specialized capabilities such as medical teams and engineering support. That promise was followed in August, 2016 by a commitment to deploy up to 600 troops and 150 police officers on UN operations. Canada's contributions to UN peace missions are at their lowest levels in years with just 23 military personnel currently assigned to such operations. That's not likely to change soon. In the wake of Wednesday's commitments, Vance made clear that it will take many months yet of planning and discussions with the United Nations to determine how Canada's offers of personnel and equipment can best fit with ongoing missions. “Some of the ‘when' on smart pledges is years away. Some of the ‘when' on other potential operations is sooner than that,” he said. Some observers criticized the Liberal government for not committing personnel to a single mission, choosing instead to disperse personnel among many possible locations. But Vance said that despite speculation, there was never a plan in the works to deploy troops on a single UN operation, saying, “I've never received guidance that said do a mission with 600 (troops).” Suggestions that troops were headed to Mali, for example, or that the announcement had been delayed “didn't match the reality of the work we were doing,” Vance said. “There were a lot of assumptions made about, ‘hey, we're going to Africa',” Vance said Instead, he said that Canada was working with the United Nations “to figure out a new way of doing business.” And he said repeated fact-finding trips by bureaucrats and politicians, including visits to African countries, were not about scouting any one particular mission. “That's us doing research . . . that allowed us to arrive at an approach that government could consider,' he said. “We've been working for over a year to determine what are the various options available to government in terms of how to improve UN performance overall with Canadian troops,” Vance said. Yet given that Africa is the location of many UN missions so “it's very likely a place where we would offer contributions,” Vance said. The peace support strategy calls for a new training and advisory team to work with a nation before and during a deployment to improve their own ability to conduct peace operations. It also says that Canada will contribute to training centres and schools. Vance said such activities will be the “flagship” of the plan. “We're going to try and leverage the Canadian expertise, one of the best trained militaries in the world and best equipped, . . . so that UN mission performance can improve,” Vance said. Defence analyst Dave Perry said elements of the peacekeeping strategy make sense. The problem, he said, is that the government itself had raised expectations with its drawn-out decision-making and rhetoric about its intentions. “It wasn't just what the government was saying publicly. I think there were also a number of commitments that were strongly intimated to some of Canada's key allies,” Perry said in an interview. “My sense is that the different options that were put forward by the department of national defence for whatever reasons weren't palatable to the government,” said Perry, a senior analyst with the Canadian Global Affairs Institute. While he said the contributions to UN operations were “modest,” Perry said Canada is better off providing military support to other missions, such as coalition efforts to combat Daesh, or NATO roles. “Bluntly, there are better ways of achieving Canadian national objectives in the world that through UN missions,” Perry said. https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/11/16/training-foreign-troops-will-be-the-flagship-of-canadas-new-un-peace-strategy-top-soldier-says.html

Montreal, November 14, 2017 – Discovery Air Defence Services Inc. (“DA Defence”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Discovery Air Inc., today announced that it has now flown its first fast jet training mission in support of the Australian Defence Force's Fast Jet Trial contract. Two DA Defence upgraded Alpha Jets and four Air Affairs Learjets participated in air-to-air missions as Red Air aggressors near RAAF Williamtown, New South Wales. The jets were participating in the Royal Australian Air Force 81 Wing workups for future exercises. “This inaugural fast jet mission is a great milestone for everyone involved in our new Australian program,” said Steven “Bunt” Nierlich, DA Defence Program Manager and a highly-experienced former CF-18 pilot. “Discovery Air Defence and Air Affairs Australia are committed to delivering the world's best adversary training to the Australian Defence Force.” “This mission marks the achievement of initial operating capability (IOC) in our Australian fast jet program,” said Paul Bouchard, President of DA Defence. “Working closely with our partner Air Affairs Australia, also an expert in providing both jet and unmanned target services, we look forward to training the Australian Defence Force with highly-representative adversary threats beyond this trial and into the future.” DA Defence is the most experienced provider of turnkey tactical airborne training in the world. With eight Main Operating Bases across three continents, DA Defence operates the world's largest privately-owned fleet of aggressor and combat support aircraft. With an unparalleled safety record, including 66,000 accident-free flight hours, DA Defence, along with their wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary, Top Aces Corp., is the exclusive contracted airborne training service provider to the Canadian, German, and Australian armed forces. DA Defence's unique mix of modern fighter and special mission aircraft equipped with representative 4th generation threat capabilities delivers the mission profiles, flexibility, and availability demanded by the world's leading air forces. About DA Defence and Discovery Air DA Defence and its U.S. subsidiary, Top Aces Corp., have the world's largest privately-held operating fleet of fighter aircraft. The training provided supports the operational readiness of both current and future generation fighter aircraft. Discover more on how DA Defence is changing the face of air combat training at experiencematters.ca. #CdnInnovation #AeroInnovates Discovery Air Inc. is a global leader in specialty aviation services. We deliver exceptional air combat training; medevac equipped aircraft services; air charter services; helicopter operations; and transport and logistics support to ensure operational readiness, health, safety, and vital lifelines for our clients and the communities we serve. Discovery Air's unsecured convertible debentures trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (symbol DA.DB.A). For Further Information: Garrick Ngai Director of Marketing Garrick.Ngai@discoveryair.com 514-694-5565 http://www.discoveryair-ds.com/page?a=2082&lang=en-CA

Posted on November 15, 2017 by Chris Thatcher The in-service support and training systems team behind Canada's new fixed-wing search and rescue (FWSAR) aircraft expects to begin construction on a training centre at 19 Wing Comox, B.C., before the end of the year. Eva Martinez, PAL Aerospace vice president of in-service support, said the first shovel should break ground in December. “We're working on finalizing that date,” she told the Best Defence Conference in London, Ont., on Nov. 1. Canada's 16 C295W aircraft will likely be distributed three per base, with two marked for training and two to be rotated amongst the SAR squadrons to cover for aircraft undergoing maintenance. Airbus Photo The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) will take delivery of the first of 16 Airbus C295W search and rescue aircraft in April 2020 at a renewed main operating base at 19 Wing, scheduled to be stood up in December 2019. Airbus was awarded a $2.4 billion contract in December 2016 to replace the RCAF's fleet of six CC-115 Buffalos and several CC-130H Hercules assigned to search and rescue duty. The contract includes delivery of the aircraft, construction of a state-of-the-art training centre, and the first five years of maintenance and support. Options for an additional 15 years of maintenance and support services could extend the agreement to 2042 and the total value to $4.7 billion. As part of the Airbus team, PAL Aerospace will provide program management services, in-service support (ISS), maintenance and logistics support, heavy maintenance, a mobile repair team, and manage a centralized supply chain. The two companies have created a Canadian joint venture called AirPro to serve as the ISS integrator. And as a Tier 1 supplier to Airbus, PAL will provide direct maintenance, repair and overall (MRO) services as well as logistics and engineering augmentation. While CAE Canada has responsibility for the training program, infrastructure and support, PAL has the task of creating a contractor field office and tool and parts warehouse and staffing an integrated team of aircraft maintenance engineers (AMEs) at the four main operating bases in Comox, Winnipeg, Trenton, Ont., and Greenwood, N.S. It will also set up a central warehouse in Winnipeg to supply all four bases, alongside an MRO facility for heavy inspections and the mobile repair party. An interim warehouse will be created in St. John's, N.L., until the Winnipeg facility is ready in December 2022. “Next year, we begin the wave of hiring,” said Martinez, noting that AMEs, a senior maintenance manager and other personnel will all need to be in place as the facilities and services at each main operating base come online, starting with Comox and then likely Winnipeg, Trenton and Greenwood, “though that may change.” This rendering shows the new fixed-wing search and rescue training centre to be built at 19 Wing Comox, B.C. CAE Image The 16 C295W aircraft will likely be distributed three per base, with two marked for training and two to be rotated amongst the SAR squadrons to cover for aircraft undergoing maintenance, she said. Although St. John's-based PAL has been providing airline, aviation and manufacturing services since 1972, establishing a global reputation in the process, the FWSAR contract has helped put the company “on the map” in Canada, Martinez acknowledged. As part of its central role in the program, PAL will be leaning on a wider supply chain of small and medium Canadian companies to achieve its industrial and technological benefits (ITB) obligations. “[We] will be expecting [our] suppliers to provide the support that we need so we too can meet our ITB and value proposition contractual commitments,” she said. As one of the first large projects to move through the procurement process since the government in 2014 introduced a defence procurement strategy emphasizing value propositions (VP) to enhance economic returns, the “FWSAR contract is actually the first in Canada to fall under a measured VP,” Martinez noted. “In other words, [the VP] wasn't just used for bid evaluation. A variety of tasks have already been pre-determined against which every Tier 1 will have to identify their labour hours specific to each of those tasks.” While Airbus will have an obligation to invest at least 15 per cent of its ITB commitments in small and medium enterprises, PAL's requirement is just 1.4 per cent. Martinez stressed, however, that the company would be looking well beyond that for additional Canadian content. “That does not mean we are going to cap ourselves at 1.4 per cent. We have just as much interest [as Airbus] in working with small and medium enterprises where it makes sense in terms of performance,” she said. https://www.skiesmag.com/news/pal-soon-hiring-sar-main-operating-bases/

​The 36-State ICAO Council. In endorsing the very first Global Aviation Security Plan today to improve international coordination, reponse, and planning relating to threats to civil aviation passengers, aircraft and facilities, the Council encouraged the ICAO Secretariat to continue refining and improving it on the basis of close continued cooperation with States and security stakeholders globally, and with due attention to all applicable implementation assistance and capacity building requirements in ICAO's Regions. ​ Montréal, 15 November 2017 – The ICAO Council took an historic step in endorsing the very first Global Aviation Security Plan to improve international coordination, response, and planning to counter threats to civil aviation passengers, cargo, aircraft and facilities. “This new strategic document will assist ICAO Member States in their aviation security coordination with other States and applicable security agencies, as well as helping to nurture security cultures and capabilities, place greater focus on the role of new technologies and innovations, and refine related frameworks for oversight and quality assurance,” affirmed ICAO Council President Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu. A set of indicators and target dates have also been established, and all associated targets and outcomes will be regularly reviewed and adjusted, taking into account all new and emerging aviation security threats. “The Council has encouraged the ICAO Secretariat to continue refining and improving this critical living document, on the basis of close continued cooperation with States and security stakeholders globally, and with due attention to all applicable implementation assistance and capacity building requirements in ICAO's Regions,” Dr. Aliu further commented. Subsequent to its first review of the new Global Aviation Security Plan in June 2017, the Council authorized its transmission to ICAO Member States and international organizations for comment. Ninety-six percent of those replies indicated agreement with its scope and purpose, as well as the related strategies and global targets, which will continue to be refined. “The ICAO Secretariat has developed this strategic document on an accelerated basis to answer the call of ICAO's Council and Member States and the respective commitments and actions of national governments will now be essential to its overall impact and value,” commented ICAO Secretary General Dr. Fang Liu. “This new Global Aviation Security Plan will now take its place alongside ICAO's existing Global Plans for aviation safety and system-wide capacity and efficiency, and importantly it directly responds to various resolutions and expectations regarding aviation security and terrorism which have been expressed to ICAO by the United Nations Security Council.” The ICAO Global Aviation Security Plan calls for action at the global, regional and national levels by States, industry and other stakeholders in raising the level of implementation of Annex 17 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation – Security. Secretary General Liu further confirmed that a roadmap outlining 94 tasks, accompanying 32 actions under five key priority outcomes, will be central to the new Global Plan's roll out. These lay the groundwork for objectives over the next three years until the 40th Session of the ICAO Assembly in 2019. In line with its contribution to the Global Counter-terrorism Strategy of the United Nations, ICAO will continue to coordinate with the Security Council and its various committees on all priorities relevant to aviation and border security, and bring together the private and public sector partners who help ensure our network remains at the dependable service of societies and economies. https://www.icao.int/Newsroom/Pages/ICAO-Council-endorses-new-Global-Aviation-Security-Plan.aspx

Fincantieri of Italy and Naval Group of France have confirmed they will jointly bid the FREMM frigate for the Canadian Surface Combatant program. Bids are due on Nov. 30. Fincantieri General Manager Alberto Maestrini told analysts of the joint bid in a Nov. 10 teleconference. CSC will see the construction of 15 new warships. Maestrini also said the FREMM frigate would be well-suited for another pending program, according to a report in Defense News. “We think it will also match perfectly the requirements put forward by the U.S. Navy in their recent request for design proposals for the Future Frigate Program,” Maestrini told analysts. http://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/french-and-italian-firms-to-submit-joint-bid-on-canadian-surface-combatant

On 13 November 2017 ministers from 23 member states signed a joint notification on the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) and handed it over to the High Representative and the Council. The possibility of the Permanent Structured Cooperation in the area of defence security and defence policy was introduced by the Lisbon Treaty. It foresees the possibility of a number of EU member states working more closely together in the area of security and defence. This permanent framework for defence cooperation will allow those member states willing and able to jointly develop defence capabilities, invest in shared projects, or enhance the operational readiness and contribution of their armed forces. The member states who signed the joint notification are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden. It is possible for other member states to join at a later stage. The joint notification is the first formal step to set up the PESCO. It sets out: the principles of the PESCO, in particular underlining that the "PESCO is an ambitious, binding and inclusive European legal framework for investments in the security and defence of the EU's territory and its citizens" the list of "ambitious and more binding common commitments" the member states have agreed to undertake, including "regularly increasing defence budgets in real terms in order to reach agreed objectives", proposals on PESCO governance, with an overarching level maintaining the coherence and the ambition of the PESCO, complemented by specific governance procedures at projects level. Joint notification by member states to the High Representative and to the Council on PESCO Next steps The Council now has to adopt a decision establishing PESCO by reinforced qualified majority. This could take place at the next Foreign Affairs Council (11 December). A first list of projects to be undertaken within the PESCO framework should be agreed by the participating member states once PESCO has been established. These could cover areas such as training, capabilities development and operational readiness in the field of defence. http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/11/13/defence-cooperation-23-member-states-sign-joint-notification-on-pesco/ Factsheet: https://eeas.europa.eu/sites/eeas/files/pesco_factsheet_13-12-2017_final.pdf

PAL Aerospace and CarteNav Solutions Announce launch of Force Multiplier An Industry leading “On Demand” Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance special mission platform On the occasion of the Dubai Air Dhow, DAS, PAL Aerospace announced the first public appearance of an On-Demand, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) Special Mission Platform named the Force Multiplier. Force Multiplier is an Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance platform for special missions operations. Ownership, operation, and maintenance are all responsibilities of PAL Aerospace and clients simply acquire the actionable data and experience that they require on this industry leading platform. The Special Mission platform is equipped with two full mission system suites, AMASCOS®, from Thales, and AIMS-ISR® from CarteNav – both mission system software suites which will accommodate a diverse range of ISR applications. Both mission systems will integrate to the Thales SEARCHMASTER® radar which is the highest performance-to-weight radar on the market. The solution fits interim and immediate requirements for surveillance and/or training missions under an on-demand contracting model. PAL Aerospace has operated over 250,000 flight hours of Special Missions and has over 40 Years of Fixed Wing Operations and Surveillance Experience. Our experience as an operator of surveillance missions leaves us uniquely qualified to bring this new platform to market with a view towards client needs and future innovation. Brian Chafe, Chief Executive Officer of PAL Aerospace, stated, “The announcement of this ISR asset is transformational for our organization. We are committed to delivering this platform so our customers can react when they need it most. We are confident that our clients will appreciate the approach that we have taken to provide a flexible, proven, reliable and low-risk solution.” Rick Hillier, General (retired – Former Chief of the Canadian Defense Staff), Chairman - PAL Aerospace, LLC stated “We are pleased to announce this significant investment at the Dubai Air Show to reinforce our commitment to this region and our over 10 year commitment to the people of the UAE.” "The entire CarteNav team is excited by the launch of Force Multiplier and are pleased to be a partner on this initiative. We are looking forward to delivering advanced ISR mission system and information management capabilities for a diversity of end customer's mission requirements. In addition, Force Multiplier is a platform that is ideal for ongoing innovation and advanced product development.” said Paul Evans, President of CarteNav Solutions. Speaking of the partnership, Philippe Duhamel, EVP Defence Mission Systems activities at Thales said, “We have a longstanding cooperation with PAL Aerospace where we have commonly addressed the UAE's and other clients' needs and delivered maritime patrol aircraft with a comprehensive suite of ISR solutions in past. Through the Force Multiplier and the collaboration with PAL Aerospace, Thales will be able to further extend its service offering and demonstrate our capabilities to our entire global customer base.” https://www.palaerospace.com/s/Media-Release-PAL-Aerospace-Force-Multiplier-Launch.pdf

DUBAI — Canada will kick start its competition for a future fighter jet in 2019 with the hopes of awarding a contract by 2021, but the head of the Royal Canadian Air Force wants the process to move as quickly as possible. “The plan right now is to have a request for proposal out to industry by 2019. we're in discussions and have been in discussions with a number of the people who are considering competing for that, and what I'd like to see is that accelerated as much as possible,” said RCAF commander Lt. Gen. Michael Hood, in an exclusive interview with Defense News. “A 2019 RFP would get us into contract probably by 2021, and certainly my advice to government is the sooner the better.” The RCAF wants to procure 88 fighter jets to replace its current inventory of aging 76 F/A-18 Hornets, which are nearing the end of their lifespans. Canada is an international participant in the F-35 joint strike fighter program and has helped pay for the development of the aircraft. But Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vowed not to procure the F-35 during his campaign, and his government has opened up the competition to industry instead of moving forward with a sole-source acquisition. The Eurofighter Typhoon, Dassault Rafale, Boeing Super Hornet and Saab's Gripen E are all projected to compete for the opportunity. To bridge the gap between its Hornet fleet and a future fighter, the RCAF initially intended to procure 18 F/A-18 Super Hornets from Boeing — a move some analysts speculated could trigger a larger procurement later on. However, the Canadian government suspended the deal due to Boeing's legal complaint against Canadian aerospace company Bombardier over its commercial business. With a Super Hornet buy unlikely as long as Boeing and Bombardier feud, and Trudeau's promise not to buy the F-35, U.S. defense experts worry that Canada could be driven into the arms of a European fighter manufacturer, thus eroding Canada's long tradition of flying U.S. jets — a move that increases the militaries' interoperability. However, Hood stated that interoperability with the United States continues to be “the most important thing to me as command of the Royal Canadian Air Force.” “Every step less of interoperability is one step less of effectiveness, so interoperability is right at the top of the list beside operational advantage,” he said. “I want the young men and women that are going to be flying fighters into harm's way to have an operational advantage, and that will be key to me in the competition that's coming.” That need for interoperability with the U.S. Air Force does not diminish the chances of European fighters, he added. Canada continues to investigate alternative ways to acquire an interim fleet of F/A-18s, including potentially buying used Hornets from Australia. However, a potential deal for Super Hornets with Boeing is still on the table, Hood said. “I think the government has been presented with the FMS case for Boeing. And as they're looking at options, that's one option,” he said. “The Australian aircraft are another, and the government has not made a decision yet.” If the RCAF moves forward with a used Hornet buy from Australia, it will have to extend the lives of the airframes, which are meeting their structural ends, Hood noted. That business would likely go to L3 Technologies, which has done life extension work on the Canadian F/A-18s in the past. But Canada would still be able to acquire the aircraft “within the next couple of years” once a decision is made. Lockheed officials have said that if Canada ultimately decided not to procure the F-35, it could end its industrial partnership with Canadian firms — which totals 110 Canadian companies with $750 million in contracts, according to Lockheed — that already help manufacture the F-35. However, asked whether Canada was concerned about losing that business, Hood demurred. “I'm not privy to the industrial aspects of our partnership with Lockheed Martin,” he said. “What I can say is Lockheed Martin is a fantastic partner for Canada and for the Royal Canadian Air Force, has been for years. We remain very, very strongly engaged both in the joint project office and helping to continue with the development of the F-35, and Canadian companies continue to bid and win on contracts with that.” https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/dubai-air-show/2017/11/11/canadian-air-chief-the-sooner-the-better-on-fighter-acquisition/

The Canadian government and Irving Shipbuilding Inc. are extending the submission deadline for the request for proposals for the design of the Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) fleet to November 30. The previous deadline had been Nov. 17. The Canadian Surface Combatant is the largest, most complex procurement undertaken by the government, according to Public Services and Procurement Canada. The ships being built will form the backbone of the Royal Canadian Navy. A winning bidder will be announced sometime in 2018 and the start of ship construction remains scheduled for the early 2020s, the government noted in a statement Friday. Bidding has been delayed a number of times now. At one point, construction of the vessels was supposed to start in 2018. http://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/submission-of-bids-delayed-again-on-canadian-surface-combatant-program