HOLDING PATTERN
Cold Lake-bound jets need work
Australian F-18 fighter jets destined for 4 Wing Cold Lake to supplement Canada’s aging CF-18 fighter fleet will require upgrades to their ejection seats and external aircraft lighting before they can take to the skies with the Royal Canadian Air Force.
Additionally the 18 Hornets, which first entered service in Australia in the late 1980s, will undergo “preventive aircraft structure modifications to address known fatigue issues” similar to a program that was implemented to remedy similar issues with the CF-18s.
About $150 million is spent each year on maintenance of the CF-18s, which are due to be phased out starting in the second half of 2020.
Canada’s CF-18 numbers have dropped by more than half to 76 aircraft from a peak of 138 but the Liberal government in June last year announced plans to buy 88 new fighter aircraft in a project that could cost as much as $19 billion.
The Australian jets are required as a stop-gap measure because of the timing between receiving the new planes and retirement of the older planes.
The CF-18s have most recently been used in eastern Europe. They were also deployed as part of the Middle East Stabilization Force in Iraq and Syria where they conducted 1,378 sorties and were involved in 251 airstrikes on ISIL targets.
“Individual aircraft will be retired when either their safe structural life has expired or they are no longer required given the delivery of the permanent fleet,” said Department of National Defence spokesperson Jessica Lamirande.
“It is anticipated that the supplemental aircraft will be in service for several years, sufficient to ensure the capability gap is filled until the transition to the permanent CF-18 replacement that commences in the second half of the 2020s is complete.”
Lamirande said Canada invested in the development of additional structural modifications which, after being applied to Canadian aircraft, could also be applied to Australian aircraft that would further extend their service.
Postmedia has previously reported that the CF-18s had been scheduled to be removed from service around 2025 but that timeline has been extended to 2032.
As negotiation between Australian and Canadian governments are ongoing, exact details of the deal and how much it will cost to modify the Hornets have yet to be finalized, she said.
Defence officials are still reviewing infrastructure and personnel requirements needed to accommodate additional aircraft, Lamirande said.