F-35 contracts intact despite pledges: Pentagon official

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This article was published 24/09/2015 (3664 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA — More than 100 jobs at Winnipeg’s Magellan Aerospace plant would be at risk if Canada doesn’t buy the F-35 fighter jets the plant is helping to build, the plant’s general manager said Wednesday.

But a top official at the Pentagon in Washington said he didn’t think Canada’s purchase of the planes would have any impact on whether Canadian firms keep their F-35 contracts.

Don Boitson, vice-president and general manager at Magellan Aerospace, formerly called Bristol Aerospace, made the comments in an interview with the Free Press after the issue of the planes erupted during the federal election. On Sunday, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau announced a Liberal government would not buy the F-35s to replace Canada’s aging CF-18 fighter jets because there were better planes for Canada’s needs that are less expensive.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper jumped on that and warned Canadian aerospace jobs would be lost.

Since Canada signed on as one of nine countries to be part of the U.S. Joint Strike Fighter program, Canadian firms are eligible to bid for work for the F-35 development and production. More than 33 companies have contracts worth US$637 million, including Magellan Aerospace.

The company’s Winnipeg plant has more than 100 of its 650 employees dedicated to the program. It invested $80 million in a new building and new equipment to be able to make the tail assemblies and more than 100 other small parts for the F-35. The F-35 contract could be worth $2 billion to Magellan over the next two decades.

Boitson said as the F-35 orders begin to mount and the planes start to roll off the assembly line, the number of employees needed in Winnipeg for the project could triple or even quadruple.

“Some or all of those jobs would be at stake if the F-35 was not purchased by Canada,” Boitson said.

But his concerns run contrary to comments made by Frank Kendall, U.S. undersecretary of defence for acquisition, who said Wednesday Canadian firms would not lose their contracts if Canada pulls out of the program. “I believe those suppliers are part of the team,” he said at a ceremony in Fort Worth, Texas, where the first F-35 destined for Norway was completed. “I don’t see any reason why they would not continue to be part of the team whether Canada (buys the planes) or not. We make our decisions on participation based on best value, and if Canadian firms are still best value then they will be part of the program.”

Winnipeg North Liberal MP Kevin Lamoureux said he believes Canadian aerospace companies, including those in Winnipeg, can benefit no matter what plane Canada chooses to buy, but a decision has to be made in order for those benefits to flow.

The F-35 procurement process has been a trouble spot for the Harper government. In 2010, Harper committed Canada to buying 65 of the F-35s for $9 billion total. But even as he made that commitment, the U.S. government was warning the costs were going up.

In 2012, auditor general Michael Ferguson blasted the Department of Defence for its procurement plan for the planes, accusing it of withholding information from Parliament about problems and cost overruns with the planes. Ferguson estimated the cost would actually be $25 billion, nearly three times the original estimate.

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As a result, the Harper government walked back its plans on the F-35 and promised to review the program and consider other options than the F-35. By the end of 2012, an independent auditor says the full cost of 65 planes would be $44.8 billion.

In 2014, a review of other fighter jets and the F-35 was completed, but at the end of June, Harper put off a decision on what plane to buy.

— with files from The Canadian Press

mia.rabson@freepress.mb.ca