Government of Canada awards contract for in-service support for Halifax-class combat systems

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  31 janvier 2020 | Local, Aérospatial, Naval

  Transport Canada adds Dash 8 to surveillance program fleet

  Canada's National Aerial Surveillance Program (NASP) is getting a boost through a new addition to its aircraft fleet. On Jan. 30, Minister of Transport Marc Garneau announced that Transport Canada has acquired a lower-time de Havilland Canada Dash 8-100. This aircraft will undergo modifications over the next two years to equip it for maritime patrol operations. Currently, NASP aircraft carry cameras that can covertly monitor vessels from five miles away and at 20,000 feet altitude. They are also equipped with technology that can live stream video from the aircraft to personnel on the ground, in offices and to people's phones. Through the Government of Canada's Oceans Protection Plan and the Whales Initiative, NASP aircraft detect oil spills and other marine pollution, monitor ships and track endangered whale movements. Aerial surveillance is a vital tool to monitor the designated shipping zones for endangered North Atlantic right whales, located in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and in Arctic operations such as verifying vessel pollution detected by satellites. “Transport Canada's National Aerial Surveillance Program is an essential piece of our government's efforts to keep Canada's coasts and inland waters safe and clean. I am pleased to support this work through the procurement of a new Dash 8 aircraft to enhance surveillance capacity under the program, leading to a cleaner environment and a safer shipping industry,” said Anita Anand, Minister of Public Services and Procurement. Transport Canada is also building a new NASP complex in Iqaluit, Nunavut, to support northern operations. In 2018-2019, the National Aerial Surveillance Program set a record for the number of hours flown, with a total of 4,152 hours of surveillance over 27,520 vessels for an average of 6.63 vessel over- flights per hour. https://www.skiesmag.com/press-releases/transport-canada-adds-dash-8-to-surveillance-program-fleet

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  10 mai 2019 | Local, Aérospatial

  Canada changing rules of competition for $19B fighter jet fleet to allow consideration of F-35: sources

  David Pugliese, Ottawa Citizen The Canadian government is changing the terms of the $19-billion competition to replace its aging fleet of fighter jets to allow the U.S. to enter its F-35 stealth fighter. The changes will allow for a more flexible approach in determining the value of the benefits bidders offer to Canadian defence firms, industry sources say, and come after a series of discussions with the U.S. government and threats by the Pentagon to withdraw the jet from consideration. Under the current terms, bidders were required to offer industrial benefits to Canada as part of the competition. That system, which would have disadvantaged the F-35, will now be amended, sources say. But those companies that do guarantee work for Canadian firms will receive more consideration under the new rules. U.S. officials had warned that the agreement Canada signed to be a partner nation in Lockheed Martin's development of the F-35 prohibits those partner nations from imposing requirements for industrial benefits in fighter jet competitions. “We cannot participate in an offer of the F-35 weapon system where requirements do not align with the F-35 Partnership,” U.S. Navy Vice-Adm. Mathias Winter told Canadian officials in a letter sent in December. Under the agreement, companies from the partner nations are eligible to compete for work on the F-35s, and contracts are awarded on a best-value basis. Over the last 12 years, Canadian firms have earned more than $1.3 billion in contracts to build F-35 parts. In a statement issued last week, Lockheed Martin Canada said that hundreds of Canadian jobs had been created by work on the jet. The firm noted that it continued to provide feedback to the U.S. government, which is involved with Canada in government-to-government discussions on the fighter jet program. The competition to win the Canadian contract for a fleet of 88 new fighter jets was launched on Dec. 12, 2017 and at this point four fighter jets are expected to be considered. Those include the F-35, the Super Hornet, the Eurofighter Typhoon and the Gripen. The Canadian government expects to award the contract in 2022. A request for bids for the new jets was scheduled to be released in conjunction with the CANSEC defence trade show in Ottawa at the end of the month, with bids to be evaluated by 2021. However, the government now admits that schedule is risky. In its latest update on major equipment projects the Department of National Defence said “The approved schedule is considered very aggressive,” and that “The project team is managing a number of risks which have the potential to impact schedule.” The document doesn't outline the specific risks but DND officials have acknowledged that figuring out how to deal with industrial benefits linked to the project could cause delays. The delivery of the first of the jets is expected in the mid-2020s, with the full capability available in the early 2030s, according to the DND document. The plan to purchase used Australian F-18s in the interim, the first already delivered, is also outlined in the document. It noted the final delivery of those jets is set for the end of 2021. https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canada-changing-rules-of-competition-for-19b-fighter-jet-fleet-to-allow-consideration-of-f-35-sources

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  16 février 2018 | Local, Aérospatial

  Boeing still in race to supply Canada with fighter jets: sources

  DAVID LJUNGGREN OTTAWA REUTERS UPDATED FEBRUARY 15, 2018 Boeing Co, locked in a trade dispute with the Canadian government, has applied to stay in the race to supply Canada with 88 new fighter jets, three well-placed sources said on Thursday. Companies had until Feb. 9 to express an interest in taking part in a competition for planes worth between $15-billion and $19-billion. Ottawa will release its specifications next year, at which point firms can bid. Boeing did let Canada know it was interested, said the sources, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. The decision does not mean the firm will necessarily put forward its F-18 Super Hornet. Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The U.S. aerospace company infuriated the Canadian government last year by launching a trade challenge against planemaker Bombardier Inc, accusing it of dumping airliners in the American market. Although a U.S. trade commission dismissed the complaint on Jan. 26, Boeing can still appeal the decision or launch another complaint against the Canadian firm. Well-informed sources said last week Ottawa has made clear to Boeing that its chances of winning the 88-jet deal would be harmed if it pursued the Bombardier case. Defense experts say Lockheed Martin Corp's new F-35 stealth fighter is likely the front runner. Dassault Aviation SA and Airbus SE also are expected to compete, but with planes that first flew in the 1990s. Ottawa says bids will be evaluated in part on the basis of "past and recent economic behavior of potential bidders leading up to the procurement." That test is months away from being finalized, meaning Boeing has no idea whether Ottawa would be satisfied if it did drop the challenge, the sources said. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/boeing-still-in-race-to-supply-canada-with-fighter-jets-sources/article37993487/