Canada will remain an F-35 development partner “to keep all options open until a decision is made” on what aircraft, or mix of aircraft, will replace the Royal Canadian Air Force’s CF-18 Hornet fleet, stated an annual summary released on Dec. 10. The RCAF now plans to stretch its aged Hornet fleet out to 2025, and “the project to replace the CF-18 is currently in the options analysis phase,” according to an annual update to Parliament on fighter procurement. The RCAF planned to acquire 65 F-35As, but relaunched its fighter replacement program due to cost growth and political pressure in 2012, mandating annual cost-updates to Parliament. Notional plans still call for a 65-strong fleet, if the F-35 is selected as the sole-replacement. Canada has invested $288.7 million in the F-35 program to date, and Canadian companies have gleaned a total of $587 million in F-35 contracts, according to the government’s unclassified summary.
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
