The lady who is going to fix all things wrong with our military has announced the purchase of our new fighter plane. To nobody’s surprise at all, defence minister Anita Anand announced (once again) that Canada will buy a fleet of Lockheed Martin F-35 fighters. These single-seat, single-engine ground support fighters are going to require a companion fleet of in-air refuelers to enable them to get to and from Canada’s Arctic.
But, before you ask why, the objective is to have the largest fleet of inter-operable fighter aircraft in the world with the U.S., Canada and 15 other nations. Not since prime minister John Diefenbaker ended the Avro Arrow project in 1959, has Canada had any other fighter aircraft than what the Americans wanted us to have. It is in aid of a new fighter tactic heretofore known only to mosquitos in the summer—known as swarming.
To stay in the running to buy these aircraft, Canada has contributed billions since the 1990s to their development. There are still unresolved issues with the Pratt & Whitney engine.
I realize that I have written much about these planes over the past 12 years. Little has been complimentary. Little has been approvingly. Quite frankly, I am disgusted with the idea of our young men going to war as subalterns to the Americans. I am less than pleased to see billions spent on military hardware while Canadians die in the cold of our winters because of sleeping on the streets.
Shame on you Ms. Anand. Shame on all of us.
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