HELLFIRE To me, that article seems quite one-sided, unashamedly in favour of the F-35; facts and reality be damned. The deteriorating relationship is not our fault; we didn’t start it, and we are not forcing it to continue falling apart. If they want any additional commitment to their design, they will have to prove that they still deserve our trust, take actions to earn it once again, and be willing to make concessions to that end.
We have an ally, who has not stabbed us in the back repeatedly, telling us that, from their concrete experience as a nation already trying to fly that dud, that a commitment to the F-35 may not be in our interests, especially as the only platform we choose. When a trustworthy ally that has been dependent on the F-35 tells you that, you would be smart to heed their warning.
The article completely ignores the F-35’s reputation for spending about half of its time waiting for expensive service or maintenance; spare parts are an issue. No one will argue with the fact that Canada keeps its equipment long past its best-before date. Will the F-35 still have parts available by then? Will ALIS/ODIN and other essential infrastructure still be operational such that they will be more than over-priced paperweights or ugly museum pieces? We know from experience that they try to end production whenever they give up on a design. They hadn’t even delivered what they forced us to “want” before trying to completely kill BOMARC/SAGE. What would happen then?
Frankly, if they were a true friend and ally, they would be willing to make some concessions on the matter. At the very least, we should be able to operate our own separate but interconnected ALIS/ODIN node (on which we control all of the keys), after they submit all source code for thorough review by CSE and anyone else qualified to evaluate classified material, as we see fit. The other option would be for said friend to say, “I see you’re interested in the Gripen to supplement your complement of F-35s. Let me help you make sure they are interoperable; here are the specifications necessary. I’m sure your people can finish the job. If you need it, we can assign a few engineers to help.”. Have you stopped laughing yet? Climb back up from the floor and sit down; I haven’t finished. The fact that they’re so likely not to even consider such things tells us what kind of “friends” they truly are, and should tell us more than we need to know about the only real choice we have, and it most definitely wouldn’t be more F-35s.
