Vanguard Magazine

6 AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2016 www.vanguardcanada.com s sIt REP Trudeau revamps Canada's NATO mission Gripens to get MBDA Meteor missiles During his very first NATO leaders' summit, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signaled a realignment of Canada's mission focus, by announcing the coun- try will be providing $450 million over three years for Afghan security forces and developmental projects in the country -- but this time, the bulk of the money will not go to military organizations. The Liberals will pump in as much as $90 million per year on aid and $56 million per year for train- ing and support to the Afghan security forces. This will renew Canada's previous commitment The Swedish Air Force's (SwAF) Gripen combat air- craft will soon be carrying MBDA's Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missiles (BVRAAM) as part of its compliment of weapons. The SwAF is now in its initial operational capabili- ties phase with the Meteor, according to Maj. Gen. Mats Helgesson, chief of staff of the air force. "After extensive testing by FMV (Sweden's De- fence Materiel Administration) and the Gripen Oper- ational Test and Evaluation unit, all of the new MS20 functions including the Meteor missile are now fully integrated with Gripen," he said. "The Meteor missile is currently the most lethal radar-guided missile in operational service, and the Swedish Air Force is the only operational user so far." In April this year, the FMV introduced the lat- est MS20 software load to the SwAF's Gripen fleet thus enabling the JAS 39C/D to become the first aircraft capable of operating the ramjet-powered Meteor missile. Meteor is a next generation, BVRAAM system that will revolutionize air-to-air combat in the 21st Century, according to MBDA. to the country which will expire next year. In previous years, the Conservative govern- ment's contributions had the ratios reversed. According to the Prime Minister, the new formu- la is a better fit with Canada's current strategy for defeating ISIS. "The fact is from the beginning we have always talked about the broad range of activities we can do in support of the local troops," said Trudeau. "We have consistently demonstrated a willing- ness to contribute, to deploy our troops in various places, and the opportunity to be part of the multi- national framework by the leading efforts in Latvia was exactly something we saw as an opportunity for Canada to contribute security and stability, de- fence and deterrence at a time where that's very much necessary," Trudeau said. However, the Prime Minister added, Canadian troops will not be in the Middle East will not be involved in bomb disposal missions. Canadian soldiers will instead focus on training Iraqi soldiers. MBDA is jointly held by AIRBUS Group (37.5 per cent), BAE SYSTEMS (37.5 per cent), and Leonardo – Finmeccanica (25 per cent). The weapon's development has brought togeth- er six nations with a common need to defeat the threats of today as well as those of the foresee- able future. Initially developed for Europe's new generation of combat aircraft: Gripen, Eurofighter Typhoon and Rafale, Meteor is also being integrat- ed on the F-35 Lightning II. "Meteor is a missile that no nation could have de- veloped or produced alone," said Antoine Bouvier, MBDA CEO. "Sweden and the five other Partner Na- tions in the programme – France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK – can be both proud and confi- dent that they have a missile that ensures unques- tionable air superiority for their pilots in the defence of their respective countries' sovereign interests." Meteor's performance is achieved through its unique ramjet propulsion system – solid fuel, variable flow, ducted rocket. The ramjet motor ensures that the missile has maximum thrust when it is most required, name- ly at the end game leading up to target intercept. As a result, Meteor features the largest No-Escape Zone of any other current or planned air-to-air missile system. Guided by an advanced active radar seeker, Meteor provides an all-weather capability to en- gage a wide variety of targets from agile fast jets to small unmanned aerial vehicles and cruise missiles. It is designed to meet the most strin- gent of requirements and is capable of operating in the most severe of clutter and countermea- sure environments. Back to drawing board on CF-18 replacement Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan said the govern- ment will conduct another round of consultation with defence industry companies regarding its search for a replacement to Air Force's fleet of CF- 18 fighter planes. Sajjan told industry representatives that only half of the Air Force's CF-18 fleet can be mobilized at any given time, according to a report by the Ca- nadian Press. The defence chief also warned that currently, Canada cannot meet its North Atlantic Treaty Or- ganization (NATO) and North American defence commitments with the existing fighter fleet of the Air Force. Results of the meetings favoured Lockheed Martin's fifth-generation F-35 stealth aircraft. During last year's election campaign, the Liber- als promised they would not purchase the F-35. However, since coming to power, the Liberals had shifted their position. In December, Sajjan said the F-35 will not be cut off from any upcoming competi- tion for replacements for Canada's aging CF-18 jets. CF-188 Hornet aircra. Photo: DND

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