Canada's air force might ground planesAir force might ground planes
Plea for funding. Chief of staff seeking $540 million more DAVID PUGLIESE
Canwest News Service
Thursday, April 17, 2008
The head of Canada's air force is warning he will have to ground aircraft and reduce the flying time for other planes if he doesn't receive several hundred million dollars in additional funding for spare parts, repair work and fuel.
As many as 15 CF-18s would need to be grounded, along with four Hercules transports, four Aurora patrol aircraft and six Sea King helicopters because of a lack of funding for spare parts, repair and overhaul, according to a strategic assessment produced by the air force.
Mounting fuel costs and lack of money to build hangers and other infrastructure for new planes being delivered is also putting a strain on the air force budget, warns the chief of the air staff, Lt.-Gen. Angus Watt.
The concerns are outlined in the general's strategic assessment for 2008/2009, which has been leaked to the Ottawa Citizen.
The assessment outlines what the air force needs to do its job and estimates that around $540 million in extra funding is required.
Watt was not available for an interview and air force officials could not comment. A defence source said the air force has received $97 million to address the concerns raise by the service.
That new funding should take some of the immediate pressure off the air force but retired officers say it won't make long-term problems go away and aircraft could still be grounded or flying hours reduced.
According to the assessment, the air force needs $209 million in new money for national procurement to pay for spare parts and repair and maintenance of aircraft fleets.
"This gap, if not substantially addressed, will result in a serious loss of capability across the (air force)," the assessment warns.
"A funding gap of this magnitude will accelerate the rate at which individual aircraft and fleets are required to be grounded and retired and will result in significant (flying) reductions, while potentially affecting civilian aircraft maintenance industries through corresponding layoffs."
An additional $110 million for spare parts and maintenance is needed just to meet the most critical shortfalls and deal with the bare minimum operational requirements, the assessment points out.
But even with the minimum cash infusion of $110 million, the assessment points out that "there will remain significant operational impacts, as well as the requirement to defer work and postpone addressing some airworthiness issues. This will create a wave of increased costs, reduced aircraft availability, and outstanding work that will remain to be funded and completed in the future."
Serving and retired air force officers say while the Harper government has provided the cash to buy new aircraft, such as C-17 and C-130J transport planes, it has not provided enough money to maintain the service's other fleets such as CF-18 fighter jets, Aurora patrol planes, older C-130 Hercules transports and Sea King helicopters. The lack of money to house the air force's new planes is also a problem.
Ottawa Citizen
© The Gazette (Montreal) 2008
source
http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=7e4a8398-d742-45cb-af46-65aa9b1588d0
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