The Charge of the Light Brigade – Canada style

F-35  Lightning II – the merry-go-round revs up again

Yesterday was a very odd day.  Canada celebrated the return of the last Canadian troops and the end of the Afghanistan mission, some 12 years after 9-11.  The return was marked by a nationally broadcast ceremony where Prime Minster Harper lauded the mission’s efforts to free a foreign land from the tyranny of Taliban rule and fundamentalism, and hailed as another great moment in Canadian history: in the defense of freedom and democracy.

Meanwhile, half-way across the world, Vladimir Putin, like a Czar of old, praised the rigged and forced referendum in Crimea (as the parliament, airports and military bases were surrounded by disguised Russian troops), and announced that Crimea, a part of independent Ukraine since the breakup of the USSR some 20 years ago, is now to become again part of ‘mother Russia’.

And finally last night, on CBC’s The National newscast, a length segment was aired on the new government open procurement policy and how it will be applied in opening up competition to the fighter plane – F-35 Lightning II program.

The segment, for all intents and purposes, was an anti-F-35 attack and both in allotted time and detailed information, promoted the French Dassault  Aviation's Rafale jet fighter as the preferred replacement, with some time and lip service given to the other new contender, the U.S. Boeing Super Hornet.

Put simply, the segment argued as follows:

1. the Rafale and Super Hornet are far cheaper than the F-35  - which is undoubtedly true

2. both have seen actual combat in Afghanistan and elsewhere  unlike the F-35 – which is also true

3. The French and Boeing promise to create thousands of high tech jobs in Canada as much of the components of their planes will be manufactured or assembled in Canada.

The CBC segment gave the French contender a substantial boost when it highlighted the recent purchase of some 126 Rafales by India, with 108 to be built in India and having 70% of the manufacturing jobs done “by Indians”.

4. Both the French and Boeing are willing to share all the technologies used in these planes and such access would greatly aid Canadian aerospace companies in the future.

 

What did the CBC segment leave out?

1. The Boeing Super Hornet and French Rafale are very OLD designs. The Super Hornet was first test flown in 1995 and went into service in 1999!!!  (See Wikipedia)

The Rafale went into service in France in 2001 but is an even OLDER design as it was first test flown in 1986!!!!!!!!!!!!  (See Wikipedia)

·       The F 35 is the only existing 21th century state-of-the-art fighter plane in the world, and Russia, China and even Japan are working on copying it for themselves.

2. Neither the French nor Boeing models are stealth technology and would almost be sitting ducks in future aerial warfare in any NATO or self-defense combat against an enemy with modern state-of-the-art radar and anti-aircraft ground launched missiles.

That is partly why EUROPE and the USA military are staying out of Syria and refusing to apply a “no fly zone” to protect Syrian resistance and civilians from government air attacks.   

·       Only stealth technology will do!!!   And the F-35 is the only candidate.

3. Bring either French Rafale or Super Hornet knowhow to Canada will NOT make Canada leading edge in aerospace technology.  The idea is simply a bad  joke.  Yes, the technologies are not restricted by ‘secrecy’ rules, but that is because they are OLD, generally known or matched by plane systems already available to Canada as a NATO member.

The Canada Arm used on the Space Shuttles, our contributions to the International Space Station as well as our world class Bombardier commercial aircraft attest to Canada’s already world class level of aviation technology.

·       Only the F35, which has as part of its ‘deal’ some 600 Canadian supplier contracts already in place, will bring anything new and worth knowing.

So, in the end, Canada’s combat readiness for future, 21^st century warfare is in jeopardy.  While the Russians, Chinese and even Japanese pursue building stealth fighters with new systems to match the F-35, with NATO committed to a single common fighter – the F-35, and with F-35s already delivered to and in training by American and British air forces, Canada is now being encouraged to opt out!

As the CBC acknowledges on its website, France is “aggressively” promoting the Desault Rafale and emphasizing “jobs, jobs, jobs”. ( “F-35's French rival pitches 'Canadianized' fighter jet” http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/f-35-s-french-rival-pitches-canadianized-fighter-jet-1.2577234)

Put simply, the newscast, focusing on the latest spin to the issue and using the information made available by the French in particular, did not present a balance story nor give Canadians all the facts so we and our elected representatives can make “informed decisions”.

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I always thought military objectives – winning battles and wars – by having the best technology and weapons, were supposed to be the priority.

If the world were at peace and all Canadian military aircraft had to do was patrol our borders and wave ‘hello’ to foreign boats and planes, then cheap, old aircraft and technologies would do.

But that is not our world.  The Russian bear is growling, the Islamist fundamentalists are still alive and on the move in Africa and in the Arabian Peninsula, and may yet return to power in Afghanistan.