The recent announcement by the federal government to acquire 18 F-18 Super Hornets as a capability gap filler for the RCAF is the wrong choice for the following reasons: the Super Hornet is a fourth-generation aircraft and does not have stealth capability; it lacks interoperability with fifth-generation aircraft (such as the F-35 and F-22 Raptor); and its overall cost is higher than the F-35.
Stealth capability is a fundamental requirement for air defence (air-to-air) as well as air-to-ground missions. The whole purpose of stealth is to be able to attack the target undetected, an essential aspect of North American air defence.
Stealth must be built into the aircraft during manufacture, it cannot be retrofitted. If Canada buys the Super Hornet, which would be detectable by attacking enemy forces, it becomes a liability to the defending force, not an asset. Our NORAD and NATO allies who have F-35s would not fly with us for that reason.
It has been incorrectly stated by the prime minister that the F-35 does not work (because it is in development), but this is misleading: There are more than 180 F-35s flying with an accumulated 70,000 hours. The U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Marine Corps have both declared initial operational capability and continue to expand their F-35 fleets.
It is true that developmental work continues on the F-35 and will for some time, but that is understandable. Fifth-generation aircraft such as the F-35 have a fusion of sensor capability, integrated avionics, situational awareness and weapons components, aimed at providing a pilot first-kill capability.
There will always be developmental changes to these various systems to improve performance, much the same as operating systems of personal computers undergo continuous improvement to make those computers more effective. Interoperability between aircraft fleets is essential.
More to the point, developmental work has to be done on the F-18 Super Hornet because it does not have secure, digital communications. Its use would compromise the stealth of the F-35. This is a major setback and work is being undertaken in the U.S. to develop a common link.
Should Canada buy the Super Hornet, it would not be capable of communicating with USAF air crews operating the F-35 or F-22 until the developmental work on the Super Hornet is completed in the future.
The question of cost is murky at best and potentially blatantly misleading at worst. Several reviews and audits by various government departments of an F-35 buy have been done. Those studies revealed that the overall cost of buying F-35s is less than any other contending aircraft. Competitive cost and operational effectiveness are the reasons that other allies have chosen the F-35.
Also, there has been no costing of a Super Hornet buy, which would incur a foreign military sales charge of 15 per cent. The F-35 would not, because Canada is part of the F-35 consortium.
The additional cost is particularly troubling when added to the operating costs of the current CF-18 fleet with no new money added to the defence budget. It should be clearly understood that the CF-18 and the F-18 Super Hornet are two different aircraft. They require different simulators, training and logistics support.
Moreover, the F-18 is at the end of its production cycle. Canada cannot afford two fleets of fighter aircraft to do the same job.
To aggravate the foregoing, it is troubling that the government has compelled those who were involved in the decision to purchase the Super Hornet to sign a lifetime non-disclosure agreement. Those agreements preclude knowledgeable military and civil servants, forever, from discussing the Super Hornet buy.
It would appear the federal government is covering its tracks and is going to repeat the mistakes that they made with the useless F-5 fighter buy and the E-101 helicopter debacle, costing billions of wasted dollars and failing to meet military requirements.
The F-18 Super Hornet purchase is clearly a choice of political expedience. Canadians deserve better defence and leadership than what is being provided.
William C. Weston of Salt Spring Island is a retired RCAF colonel who served for 37 years. He is a graduate of the Canadian Forces Staff College, as well as the USAF Staff College. He served in France and Germany as well as numerous appointments in the U.S. and Canada. He is a past director of exercise and analysis and deputy commander of the former 25th NORAD Region in Tacoma, Washington.
