28 janvier 2019 | Local, Aérospatial
Par Stéphane Parent | francais@rcinet.ca
Le responsable de l'approvisionnement militaire au ministère de la Défense révèle que le Canada, l'un des neuf pays partenaires du programme de mise au point des F-35, n'a pas planifié de s'en retirer.
Il semble qu'Ottawa ira de l'avant avec le versement de dizaines de millions de dollars pour le développement de cet avion de chasse F-35, même si le gouvernement fédéral continue d'étudier la pertinence ou non d'acheter ces appareils pour remplacer près d'une centaine de CF-18 qui ont plus de 40 ans d'usure.
Le F-35 figure parmi les quatre modèles qui seront évalués à partir du printemps prochain dans un appel d'offres de 19 milliards, qui résultera dans l'acquisition de 88 nouveaux avions de combat.
Le Canada a investi plus de 500 millions dans le programme des F-35 au cours des 20 dernières années, dont 54 millions l'an dernier.
Son prochain paiement annuel doit être fait ce printemps, et il y en aura sans doute d'autres, étant donné que l'appel d'offres n'est pas censé se conclure avant 2021 ou 2022.
Ce versement annuel permet au Canada de demeurer pendant encore un an membre du club des neuf partenaires dans le projet du futur avion de chasse F-35, dont la mise au point connaît des déboires majeurs.
La stratégie de rester dans le camp du F-35
Le Canada demeure donc résolument dans le camp de l'aviation militaire américaine avec l'Australie, le Danemark, l'Italie, la Norvège, les Pays-Bas, le Royaume-Uni et la Turquie.
Ces pays pourront soumettre des offres pour les contrats de milliards de dollars liés à la fabrication et à l'entretien des avions de chasse, mais aussi bénéficier de rabais s'ils décident d'en acheter.
D'autres modèles de rechange proposés sont de conception européenne – le Gripen de Saab, le Typhoon du consortium Eurofighter et le Rafale de Dassault – et Ottawa privilégie une conception
15 avril 2024 | Local, Aérospatial
Today, His Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Montréal’s crew bid farewell to their loved ones at a departure ceremony held at HMCS Scotian in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
6 août 2019 | Local, Aérospatial
DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN The Department of National Defence is looking at buying two more drones to replace those damaged in crashes earlier this year. Two of the Blackjack uninhabited aerial vehicles were damaged beyond economical repair on Jan. 31 and March 21. The damage occurred during training flights, one of which involved a collision with the recovery system. In late June there were articles in the U.S. defence press about Boeing subsidiary Insitu receiving new contracts for RQ-21A Blackjack small unhabituated aerial vehicles from the U.S. government and other countries including Canada. But the DND says the claims about Canada proceeding with a purchase are premature. Canada announced in 2016 that it was acquiring small uninhabited aerial system or SUAS (RQ-21A Blackjack) from the U.S. through a Foreign Military Sale. The federal government bought one complete system so far. That package includes four aircraft with one spare, which was delivered to the 4th Artillery Regiment (General Support) in CFB Gagetown. With the crashes earlier this work is underway at the DND on whether to proceed with replacing those aircraft. “We are assessing the possibility of making use of the provisions in this contract to purchase replacement aircraft, as two units were damaged beyond economical repair earlier this year,” explained DND spokeswoman Jessica Lamirande. Flight safety investigations are ongoing in order to determine cause and assess preventative measures, she added. Discussions are ongoing with the U.S. so costs and a timeline for replacements is not yet known. “We are also exploring the possibility of purchasing a second system, though internal discussions are still ongoing and no final decision has yet been made,” Lamirande said. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/dnd-looking-at-acquiring-drones-to-replace-those-damaged-in-crashes-earlier-this-year
31 mai 2019 | Local, Aérospatial
David Ljunggren OTTAWA (Reuters) - Boeing Co is surprised Canada softened the rules of a competition for new fighters to allow Lockheed Martin Corp to submit a bid, but is still confident it has a chance, a top executive said on Wednesday. Following a U.S. complaint, Ottawa this month said it planned to drop a clause stipulating that bidders in the multibillion dollar race to supply 88 jets must offer a legally binding guarantee to give Canadian businesses 100% of the value of the deal in economic benefits. The original clause would have excluded Lockheed Martin's F-35 fighter, the plane the Canadian air force wants. The contract is worth between C$15 billion and C$19 billion ($11.1 billion to $14.1 billion). “I was surprised by the recommended change ... why would you deviate from a policy that's been so successful to accommodate a competitor?” said Jim Barnes, the Boeing official in charge of trying to sell the company's F-18 Super Hornet jet to Canada. The change in the rules around economic benefits was the latest wrinkle in a decade-long troubled-plagued effort to replace Canada's CF-18 jets, some of which are 40 years old. The final list of requirements for the new fleet of jets is due to be issued in July. “Right now we feel like we can put a very compelling offer on the table even with this change,” Barnes told reporters on the margins of a defense and security conference in Ottawa. Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains - in overall charge of the benefits aspect of procurement - said in response to Barnes's comment that Ottawa would ensure the competition was fair. Compelling bidders to offer watertight guarantees of economic benefits contradicts rules of the consortium that developed the F-35, a group to which Canada belongs. Boeing is offering a binding commitment and Barnes said the firm would stress to Canadian officials the potential economic disadvantages of entertaining a non-binding bid. An official from Sweden's Saab AB, another contender, told reporters that Canadians could lose out by ignoring contenders that had made firm investment commitments. “I am concerned that the ability to respond to a non-binding environment may not necessarily give Canadians the best value at the end of the day,” said Patrick Palmer, head of sales and marketing for Saab Canada. Airbus SE, the fourth firm in the race, declined to comment. Reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by Susan Thomas https://www.reuters.com/article/us-canada-fighterjets/boeing-surprised-canada-changed-rules-of-jet-competition-to-allow-lockheed-martin-bid-idUSKCN1SZ2AA