Workers to continue strike at Canada's Bombardier, union rejects company's proposal

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  31 octobre 2018 | Local, Aérospatial

  Ottawa sticking to F-35 program as it gets ready for full fighter competition

  DANIEL LEBLANC Canada is facing a complex challenge as it gets ready to launch a full competition for new fighter jets stemming from its long-standing involvement in the international coalition that is building the Lockheed Martin Corp. F-35 stealth aircraft. The federal government confirmed on Monday that it will maintain its membership in the F-35 consortium. At the same time, Ottawa is getting ready to send out requests for proposals for new fighter jets to five potential bidders, including Lockheed Martin. Federal officials insist that all bidders will have to adhere to Canada's Industrial and Technological Benefits policy (ITB), which requires the winning supplier to “make investments in Canada equal to the value of the contract." The cost of replacing the Royal Canadian Air Force's current fleet of CF-18s is estimated at $26-billion. Under the rules of the F-35 consortium, however, partner countries such as Canada must forego such regional offset programs, which have long been a central element of Canadian military acquisitions. Earlier this year, Canada paid $54-million to remain in the F-35 buyers' pool. “We're keeping our involvement alive to get access to that product at the best possible terms,” Pat Finn, an assistant deputy minister at the Department of National Defence, said in an interview on Monday. “If the F-35 were to win, the lowest cost access to the aircraft is through the partnership. Having been involved from the outset, we don't want to lose the privilege of that." Since 1997, Canada has paid nearly half a billion dollars to stay in the F-35 consortium. Jeff Waring, a director-general at Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, said it will be up to Lockheed Martin to determine how it can meet Canada's requirement for regional offsets if it wants to bid on the contract. “The ITB policy is a market-driven approach; it doesn't prescribe to bidders how they need to invest in Canada,” he said. The federal government has nearly finalized its request for proposal for the new fighter jets. It is now waiting for industry feedback over the next six weeks before launching the formal competition next year. Three European companies (Dassault Aviation, Saab Automobile and Airbus) and two American companies (Lockheed Martin and Boeing Co.) have said they intend to bid on the contract. In the draft request for proposal, the government has laid out new details on its “economic impact test” that will penalize companies that are deemed to have a negative effect on the Canadian economy. When it was announced last year, the test was dubbed the “Boeing clause” because of U.S.-based Boeing's trade dispute with Canada's Bombardier Inc., which Bombardier subsequently won. The new measure is expected to look at whether companies have launched a trade action in the two previous years against a Canadian company. Given Boeing launched its case against Bombardier in 2017, it will likely be in the clear by the time it would have to submit a final bid in 2020. The previous Conservative government had committed to buying F-35 fighter jets, which were deemed at the time to be the only aircraft able to meet Canada's requirements, in large part because of their stealth capabilities. The current Liberal government has modified the requirements to make sure there can be competition between the various manufacturers. “If your aircraft cannot meet [a requirement] today, we are not saying automatically that you're out; but you have to tell us what is your solution to meet it, at what price and what schedule,” said Mr. Finn. In the last federal election, the Liberals said in their platform that they would not buy the F-35, promising instead to select “one of the many, lower-priced options that better match Canada's defence needs.” However, the Liberals also promised to launch an “open and transparent” competition, which is now scheduled to be launched in May. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-ottawa-sticking-to-f-35-program-as-it-gets-ready-for-full-fighter/

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  4 novembre 2019 | Local, Aérospatial

  Air-traffic control changes in U.S., Europe may force Ottawa to buy new executive jets

  OTTAWA -- The federal government could be forced to buy new executive jets to transport the prime minister and other VIPs because of changes to air-traffic control rules in the U.S. and Europe. Two of the four Challenger jets currently used by the Canadian Forces for executive transport lack the equipment needed to comply with the new ADS-B system, which replaces radar-based air-traffic control with the transmission of GPS-based data. That will curtail the aircraft's ability to fly in the U.S. and Europe beginning next year. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has set Jan. 1, 2020, as the date aircraft will require ADS-B transmitters to operate legally in most airspace. Europe is implementing the system in June 2020. It doesn't make sense to install the equipment on two of older 1980s-era Challenger 601 jets flown by 412 Squadron, the defence department says. "Given the age of the fleet, investing in an ADS-B modification/upgrade would not be cost effective," the department said in an email. "We are therefore looking at other mitigation options. Timelines and costs will be determined once options have been selected." Buying new executive jets to replace the aging Challengers could be politically risky for the Trudeau government when it still hasn't acquired fighter jets to replace the aging fleet of CF-18s. Opposition parties of all stripes have assailed governments for what they considered profligate use of government aircraft in the past. "The executive fleet has been perennial issue where the country is penny-wise and pound-foolish," said David Perry, a defence procurement expert with the Canadian Global Affairs Institute. "We don't want to spend the money to buy aircraft and we have this bizarre expectation where you're taking the people in government whose time is most valuable and making them fly economy, basically, around the world." The continued use of older aircraft makes Candians look like "cheapskates," he said, comparing political opposition to the planes with the government's refusal to renovate 24 Sussex, the prime minister's official residence. The defence department projects spending between and $20 million and $49 million to "consolidate" the Challenger fleet, a figure likely based on acquiring used aircraft. Sources familiar with the operation of 412 Squadron say it would be difficult to meet its mandate with only two aircraft available to travel outside the country. The jets are used to transport the prime minister and Governor General and cabinet ministers, as well as the chief of defence staff, and visiting members of the Royal Family. But the jets are also on-call for medical evacuations, deploying advance teams with the Disaster Assistance Relief Team (DART) and, on occasion, covertly transporting Canadian special forces personnel. With only four Challengers, the squadron is operating close to capacity and losing two aircraft could threaten its ability to perform these missions, the sources said. If the government chose to acquire brand-new aircraft, it might be tempted to consider the Bombardier Global Express, which is faster and has a longer range than the smaller Challenger, making travel to Europe and Asia easier. Most of the aircraft is assembled in Canada. The German government currently uses four of Bombardier's Global 5000 jets for executive transport. Other documents show DND is projecting spending up to $249 million to extend the lifespan of the five larger Airbus 300-series jets beyond 2026, including one that prime minister and his staff fly on occasion. Once dubbed "the flying Taj Mahal" by then-opposition leader Jean Chretien, the Airbus is antiquated compared to most modern commercial aircraft, though it does have a private room for the prime minister to sleep in. Flight crews on the Airbus run extension cords and power bars down the aisles to allow passengers to run their laptop computers. https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/air-traffic-control-changes-in-u-s-europe-may-force-ottawa-to-buy-new-executive-jets-1.4668608

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  19 novembre 2019 | Local, Aérospatial

  CAE, Jazz and Seneca launch first cadet pilot training program in Canada

  CAE, Jazz Aviation, and Seneca have teamed up to develop Jazz Approach, an innovative Canadian program to provide Jazz with a pipeline of top-quality first officers. Cadets will receive a letter of employment from Jazz upon selection into the program, allowing for a direct path to join the airline as first officers conditional upon successful completion of the program. The parties involved have signed a five-year partnership agreement and the first cohort is set to begin training in April 2020. “CAE creates over 1,500 new pilots yearly over 30 cadet training programs globally, and we are thrilled to add a first Canadian cadet pilot training program to our list of curricula,” said Nick Leontidis, CAE's group president, Civil Aviation Training Solutions. “The demand for pilots has never been so high. With over 300,000 pilots needed globally over the next decade, CAE is working closely with airlines around the world to come up with pilot creation solutions. This program is a one-of-a-kind program, and a great example of how the Canadian aviation industry is working closely together to come up with innovative solutions to face that challenge. We thank Jazz for its trust, we are honored to help expand upon its pipeline of future pilots and we look forward to training them alongside Seneca.” Jazz Aviation's pilots have been training in CAE's network in Canada since 2003. Now, under this new agreement, with its partner Seneca, CAE will be assisting Jazz in the selection, training and certification of new pilots. “We are very excited to partner with two exceptional Canadian organizations, CAE and Seneca, to introduce the Jazz Approach program,” said Capt Steve Linthwaite, vice-president, Flight Operations for Jazz Aviation. “For Jazz, this innovative initiative will be an expansion of our Jazz Aviation Pathways Program (Jazz APP) and provides yet another avenue for future generations of pilots to launch their careers in aviation. The roots of the Jazz APP program go back to 2007 and the addition of Jazz Approach is an important step in growing the program to yet another level. We have worked with both CAE and Seneca for many years and we are delighted to have the opportunity to join together to introduce this program in Canada.” “We are thrilled to be partnering with CAE and Jazz Aviation through this innovative all-Canadian collaboration. The Jazz Approach program builds on the success of our partnership with Jazz Aviation and will be an excellent addition to the suite of academic and hands-on training offered within our School of Aviation,” said Lynne McMullen, director of strategic partnerships with Seneca's School of Aviation. “The Jazz Approach program is another opportunity for Seneca to be on the forefront of flight training in Canada.” About the Jazz Approach program CAE, Jazz and Seneca developed the Jazz Approach program in close collaboration, showcasing the latest competency-based training innovations. The Jazz Approach program embeds Jazz Aviation standard operating procedures (SOPs) and threat and error management strategies. Under the terms of this program, CAE will conduct recruitment, assessment and selection of the cadets according to Jazz's defined criteria. The cadets will undergo the integrated airline transport pilot license (ATPL) training over 18 months at Seneca's School of Aviation in Peterborough, Ont. Following completion, CAE will provide a CRJ200 type rating at CAE Toronto, leveraging CAE's innovative training equipment. Upon successful completion of the training program and subject to certain conditions, the first graduates will join Jazz Aviation as first officers by the end of 2021. Applications for the Jazz Approach training program will open on Dec. 1, 2019. https://www.skiesmag.com/press-releases/cae-jazz-and-seneca-launch-first-cadet-pilot-training-program-in-canada