Vanguard Magazine

Navantia-led team submits proposal for CSC Canada announces steps to merge the Australian F-18s into its current fleet sit rep Spare parts As part of this acquisition, the Australian government will provide spare parts for the F-18 aircraft, and Canada will also continue to use its exist- ing supply chain for parts when needed. Training and personnel Training for the Australian F-18 is the same as that of the present fleet of CF-18s. On the personnel side, with the addition of the 18 jets, there will be the need for an increasing number of pilots and technicians. Through Strong, Secure, Engaged, recruitment efforts are underway to fulfill this need. Operations At the present time, Canada does not have the aircraft or personnel to fully meet the simultaneous commitments of NORAD, NATO, operating at home, in North America and in the world. The addition to its fighter fleet will provide the much-needed capacity. Infrastructure The aircraft will be employed at 3 Wing Bagotville and 4 Wing Cold Lake. The Department of National Defence is currently reviewing infrastruc- ture requirements to accommodate the additional aircraft. With the jets being of similar age and design, any modifications are expected to be minimal. and Rheinmetall Canada. The team's solution will utilise the capabilities of over 50 Canadian companies and will create over 1,000 jobs in Canada, including a full technology transfer of the design and CMS to Canada to be integrated and maintained by Canadian companies. The team is proposing that if the Navantia solution is selected, Canada will "not be burdened with unnecessary cost and risk concerns as CSC transitions from design to production, and ultimately, to a proven opera- tional capability." Today is the deadline for submission of RFPs for the CSC program, in which the Royal Canadian Navy will acquire up to 15 frigates to replace the Iroquois Class destroyers and Halifax Class frigates. Construction of the frigates will begin in the early 2020s. With the recent announcement to purchase 18 used Australian F-18 fighter jets, Canada has issued a list of steps needed to integrate the F- 18s with its current fleet of CF-18s. Life extension and upgrade Canada is planning to proceed with technical work to modify the Aus- tralian F-18 aircraft to meet similar configuration of the CF-18s. This will make it possible to supplement the current of CF-18s until the future fighter fleet is procured. The Navantia team has made an announcement of the submission of its bid for the Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) program. The team, which is led by Navantia, is comprised of Saab Australia, which will deliver the Combat Systems Integrator (CSI), and CEA Tech- nologies, to provide other key elements of the proposed solution. "With a strong heritage in designing and building frigates and destroy- ers and proven technology transfer in global programs, the Navantia team offers a compliant solution with the best capability for the Royal Canadian Navy and the Canadian shipbuilding industry," said Navantia Chairman Esteban García Vilasánchez. The team's solution is based on "the proven F-105 frigate design" for the Spanish Navy. This design, coupled with capabilities of key Canadian companies, will provide a ship that is ideally suited to Canada's require- ment, according to the press release. Navantia has a history of providing modifications of this design for many navies, including the Norwegian Navy and most recently, the Roy- al Australian Navy (RAN). The proposal incorporates Saab's 9LV Combat Management Systems (CMS), which is on over 240 platforms in 16 navies worldwide, including the Halifax class frigates. This platform is a proven capability which was recently confirmed by the move by the Australian government which mandated that Saab's 9LVCMS be used on all major surface combatants of the RAN. Other key suppliers engaged by Saab to support the CSC program in- clude Lockheed Martin, General Dynamic Mission Systems – Canada (GDMS-C), DRS Technologies Canada Ltd. (DRS TCL), OSI Maritime Service 14 DECEMBER 2017/JANUARY 2018 www.vanguardcanada.com

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