F-35 program worries ‘clatter and noise’: MacKay
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 19/11/2011 (5140 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
HALIFAX — Worries over the costs and need of the F-35 fighter jet program are merely “clatter and noise,” Defence Minister Peter MacKay said Friday as he reaffirmed the federal government’s commitment to the high-tech multi-role aircraft.
MacKay and his American counterpart, U.S. Defence Secretary Leon Panetta, tried to downplay concerns surrounding the multibillion-dollar procurement program, saying they’re confident it is not in jeopardy.
MacKay said the F-35s will become a vital component in protecting interests in North America and abroad.
“All of the hypothetical discussions and quite negative discussions quite frankly about this program are really just clatter and noise,” he told a news conference in Halifax.
“This program is going ahead. Clearly, budgetary pressures are going to lead to speculation.”
Panetta said he is confident the American government will be able to fund the F-35s, even as it tries to trim costs to rein in its deficit.
Earlier, Panetta warned of deep cuts facing the U.S. military that could leave it with its smallest air force ever. But Friday he said that should not affect America’s commitment to the F-35 stealth fighter program.
“This is the plane that is going to be able to provide the technology and the capabilities for the future,” he said. “We need to have this. It’s true for us and its true for our partners.”
Panetta also dismissed reports that he wants Canada to pick up more of the aircraft than the 65 Ottawa has already committed to buying.
“That’s just not true,” he said. “Canada has to make decisions as to what it believes are necessary and I trust the ability of Canada and the minister to make the right decisions as to what they need and we’ll support that.”
MacKay and Panetta are in Halifax to discuss defence and security issues at the Halifax International Security Forum.
Their talks come just days after Panetta threatened to cancel the F-35 program unless the Republican-controlled Congress agrees to a series of cuts elsewhere in the Pentagon.
Canada’s current fleet of 77 CF-18s is slated to be retired by 2020.
Documents obtained by The Canadian Press under the Access to Information Act show an initial delivery schedule of 16 new F-35 fighters per year plus one spare beginning in 2016.
The delivery of all of the jets would be spread out between 2016 and 2023, with the majority of the aircraft arriving after 2019, according to Defence Department figures.
Previously released documents indicate the price range of $75 million to $150 million for each fighter has limited Canada’s purchase to 65.
— The Canadian Press