4 janvier 2019 | Local, Aérospatial
Moving the Canadian military's Aerospace Engineering Test Establishment out of Cold Lake to Ottawa is the only way 4 Wing can grow to accommodate new fighters, says AETE commanding officer Col. Eric Grandmont, referring to feasibility studies conducted by the Air Force.
He said the loss of AETE will be offset by a gain for 4 Wing.
“We are planning ahead for the long-term future of Canada's fighters,” he said. “The RCAF is committed to Cold Lake and Bagotville as our fighter bases, and there will be significant investment in these areas to prepare for the arrival of the future fighters.”
The new aircraft will require an expansion of 4 Wing. Facilities will need to be updated and the current AETE building, which is the newest and second largest hanger on the base, will need to be repurposed.
Canada is currently in the process of purchasing 25 used fighter aircraft from Australia and buying another 88 new jets to replace the existing fleet of CF-18s.
The costs for relocating AETE are included in the $470 million the Liberal government has set aside for buying the used Australian F-18 fighter jets.
Grandmont said he is hoping the transition plan for AETE will be approved by this spring.
The move, which would not take place before the summer of 2021, could affect one-third of AETE, which employs 166 military personnel and 22 public servants.
The remainder would be reassigned elsewhere in the air force, either in Cold Lake or other military bases.
“We are trying to minimize the impact on the city,” said Grandmont, adding the current plan is to stagger his staff's moves to Ottawa.
He said some of the positions in question are currently vacant and, if filled, those employees would start their jobs immediately in the nation's capital instead of coming to Cold Lake in the interim.
Also, some public servants currently working for AETE in Cold Lake are close to retirement and would likely choose to end their careers and stay in Alberta's north instead of moving to Ottawa.
Grandmont says once the unit relocates it will augment its staff with civilian test pilots.
“We are hoping to recruit retired members back to the unit once it's in Ottawa,” said Grandmont, adding that moving AETE would put the unit in a central position to service all Canadian Forces aircraft, many of which are in Eastern Canada.
“Our people spend a lot of time on the road. They can be away for five or six months a year,” said Grandmont.
Recently, some AETE personnel spent seven months in Petawawa, Ont. doing the work necessary to have two Chinooks available to send to Mali, where Canada has been providing emergency medical evacuation for the United Nations peacekeeping mission going on in that country.
There are 19 fleets in the Canadian Air Force and only two of them are in Cold Lake—the CF-18 and the Griffon helicopters, said Grandmont.
Other aircraft, like the CC-130J Hercules, CC-17 Globemaster and CC-150 Polaris are all based in Trenton, Ont. The CC-144 Challengers are in Ottawa. The CP-140 Aurora and the CH-149 Cormorants are in Greenwood, NS. The CH-148 Cyclones are in Shearwater, NS, The CH-147F Chinooks are in Petawawa, Ont. There are CC-138 Twin Otters are in Yellowknife.
AETE, like all units in the Air Force, is facing a shortage of pilots. Recruiting multiengine pilots from Eastern Canada is a challenge for AETE, and a CC-130H Hercules pilot based in Winnipeg does not necessarily want to uproot his or her family to Cold Lake where his or her spouse would have limited options for employment, as well as restricted access to health care.
“Although once people get to Cold Lake, they usually enjoy their time here,” said Grandmont. “It is a beautiful area.”
AETE has also been losing personnel to private industry, which can offer better working conditions for experienced testers.
Postmedia first revealed the proposal to move AETE in 2016. The plan first started under the Conservative government, but the Liberals continued with the relocation initiative.
-With files from David Pugliese
(Disclosure: The editor of the Cold Lake Sun is married to a member of AETE.)
12 octobre 2022 | Local, Autre défense
Canada said on Wednesday it will provide over C$47 million ($34.06 million) in new military aid to assist Ukraine in dealing with Russia's invasion, with the package including artillery rounds, satellite communications, winter clothing and drone cameras, among other assistance.
23 mai 2023 | Local, Naval
L’inclusion du chantier maritime Davie dans la Stratégie nationale de construction navale (SNCN) fait rêver à Lévis. Avec environ 8,5 milliards de dollars en contrats fédéraux à portée de main, on voit la construction navale devenir un secteur de pointe comme l’aéronautique à Montréal. Mais les fournisseurs de Davie ont du pain sur la planche pour ne pas rater le bateau.
13 juin 2019 | Local, C4ISR
CAMBRIDGE, ON and ATHENS, Greece, June 13, 2019 /CNW/ - exactEarth Ltd. ("exactEarth") (XCT:TSX), a leading provider of Satellite-AIS data services, and MarineTraffic, a leading global provider of ship tracking and maritime intelligence, announce that they have entered into a three-year channel partner agreement (the "Agreement"). Under terms of the Agreement, MarineTraffic will deploy exactEarth's exactView RT data into its online maritime services products to help bring real-time, business-critical and actionable vessel information to maritime industry participants. exactView RT consists of 58 operational payloads and seven orbital spares that were designed and built by Harris Corporation and that are hosted onboard the Iridium NEXT constellation of satellites, which is owned and operated by Iridium Communications Inc. exactView RT's advanced maritime payloads cover the entire maritime VHF radio band and leverage the unique cross-linked architecture of the Iridium NEXT satellite constellation to deliver AIS and other vessel-based VHF data services from more than 500,000 vessels, anywhere on the globe, relaying that data securely to customers in real-time. MarineTraffic owns the world's preeminent ship-tracking website, which attracts approximately six million unique visitors per month. The company operates 2,000 AIS stations in more than 165 countries around-the-world, delivering the most comprehensive AIS coastal tracking facility available today. For companies in the maritime sector, MarineTraffic is a preferred tool for fleet management, alert and notification systems, vessel particulars, port statistics and actionable intelligence through API. "MarineTraffic is a leading provider of vessel movement information services and we look forward to contributing to their ongoing efforts to enhance their customer experience," said Peter Mabson, President & CEO of exactEarth. "This Agreement opens-up another channel for our Satellite-AIS data services and is a further positive indication of the response we have received from customers, prospects and partners regarding the real-time functionality of exactView RT. With its superior vessel detection, rapid update rate and reliability, exactView RT is becoming a "must-have" data source on major data platforms throughout the maritime industry." Argyris Stasinakis, Partner Business Development, MarineTraffic said, "The addition of exactEarth's high resolution, real-time AIS data means that MarineTraffic is now the go-to source for any professional seeking the most comprehensive view of shipping movements. Users of our platform exploiting our ocean coverage services will see enhanced functionality thanks to the higher frequency, coverage and less than one-minute latency delivered by the exactView RT satellite constellation. This means that our popular predictive services will be more accurate than ever before, allowing our customers to monitor and plan more precisely." About MarineTraffic With headquarters in Athens and international offices in the UK and Singapore, MarineTraffic is the global ship tracking and maritime intelligence provider. Leveraging AIS technology, MarineTraffic is at the forefront of a movement taking shipping into a new digital era. The company's range of services deliver increased transparency to the shipping markets through the provision of high-quality data for analysis, which supports forecasting and informed decision making. MarineTraffic receives analyses and stores millions of vessel positions every day. This data is collected through the world's most extensive network of AIS stations before being enriched to deliver business-critical information. Current positions and vessel's tracks are displayed on a Live Map, with historical positions, vessel details, port conditions and statistics being made available throughout the website. www.marinetraffic.com About exactEarth Ltd. exactEarth is a leading provider of global maritime vessel data for ship tracking and maritime situational awareness solutions. Since its establishment in 2009, exactEarth has pioneered a powerful new method of maritime surveillance called Satellite-AIS and has delivered to its clients a view of maritime behaviours across all regions of the world's oceans unrestricted by terrestrial limitations. exactEarth has deployed an operational data processing supply chain involving a constellation of satellites, receiving ground stations, patented decoding algorithms and advanced "big data" processing and distribution facilities. This ground-breaking system provides a comprehensive picture of the location of AIS equipped maritime vessels throughout the world and allows exactEarth to deliver data and information services characterized by high performance, reliability, security and simplicity to large international markets. For more information, visit www.exactearth.com Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains statements that, to the extent they are not recitations of historical fact, may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking statements may include financial and other projections, as well as statements regarding exactEarth's future plans, our ability to continue as a going concern, objectives or economic performance, or the assumptions underlying any of the foregoing, including statements regarding, among other things, expectations of our exactView RT offering relative to competitors, timing of the achievement of real-time global vessel tracking via our second-generation constellation, timing expectations with respect to launch of satellites, expectations of the exactView RT capabilities driving growth, growth opportunities for the Company in the maritime information services market and the cost and revenue share in connection with the Harris Agreement. exactEarth uses words such as "may", "would", "could", "will", "likely", "expect", "anticipate", "believe", "intend", "plan", "forecast", "project", "estimate" and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Any such forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and analyses made by exactEarth in light of its experience and its perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors exactEarth believes are appropriate under the relevant circumstances. However, whether actual results and developments will conform to exactEarth's expectations and predictions is subject to any number of risks, assumptions and uncertainties. Many factors could cause exactEarth's actual results, historical financial statements, or future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this news release. These factors include, without limitation: uncertainty in the global economic environment; fluctuations in currency exchange rates; delays in the purchasing decisions of exactEarth's customers; the competition exactEarth faces in its industry and/or marketplace; the further delayed launch of satellites; the reduced scope of significant existing contracts; and the possibility of technical, logistical or planning issues in connection with the deployment of exactEarth's products or services. https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/exactearth-and-marinetraffic-announce-channel-partner-agreement-865863568.html