Contract worth more than $1 billion awarded for training CF-18 pilots
QUEBEC COMPANY
The Canadian government has awarded a contract estimated at more than $1 billion to a Montreal company to provide fighter-jet training to the Canadian military.
Discovery Air Defence will field a fleet of fighter jets to go toe-to-toe with the military’s CF-18s. The firm’s aircraft will also act as the enemy during Canadian army and navy training exercises.
But a company executive says the private fighter fleet could also ease the strain on the Royal Canadian Air Force’s aging CF-18s by filling other training roles if the military wants to expand the program.
The project, known as the Contracted Airborne Training Services (CATS), will run over an initial 10-year period with the option to continue for another five years.
While Discovery Air Defence did not release the value of the contract, analysts have estimated it to be worth at least $1 billion and some say it could reach $1.5 billion if the five-year option is picked up.
Garry Venman, vice-president of business development and government relations at Discovery Air Defence, said the company has been delivering such services to the Canadian military since 2005.
“What this does for us is give us long-term stability,” he said. “This is a long-term contract, 10 years plus options that takes us out well beyond 2030.”
Two firms publicly acknowledged they submitted bids for CATS; one from Discovery Air Defence, the other from CAE, also from Quebec, which allied itself with U.S. firm Draken.
Discovery Air will also provide aircraft to tow targets and carry electronic warfare systems in various training scenarios.
Discovery Air Defence has what is considered the world’s largest private fleet of operational fighter jets. IT traces its lineage to 2001 when it was founded by three former CF-18 pilots. Employing about 200 staff, the company’s aircraft have flown 66,000 hours in support of military training without an incident. The firm also provides training services to air forces in Australia and Germany and is pursuing contracts in the United Kingdom.