Posted on 02/01/2011 3:41:29 PM PST by ErnstStavroBlofeld
The Canadian military is denying a media report that there are flaws in the F-35 stealth fighter jets the Conservative government has agreed to spend billions to purchase.
A F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is seen in the hangar prior to an announcement by Defence Minister Peter MacKay in Ottawa in October. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)A published report in Monday's Ottawa Citizen quotes unnamed sources as saying the F-35s cannot be refuelled mid-air with existing air force equipment and can't land on short runways in Canada's North without costly changes.
Department of National Defence staff criss-crossed the country on Monday, pitching the need for the jets to local reporters from Vancouver to Halifax.
Maj.-Gen. Tom Lawson, assistant chief of the air staff, told CBC News in Mississauga, Ont., that he wants to "de-lie" many myths floating around about the F-35s.
"It's important to us that Canadians have the facts," Lawson said. "Landing on airports up in the North is absolutely no problem at all."
(Excerpt) Read more at cbc.ca ...
Buying more F-18’s or any of the other great aircraft on the market, as long as they have the latest & greatest radar & keep it cutting-edge, will be a superior choice to the F-35.
IMHO, an even better choice for Canada would be the F-15E Strike Eagle, with AESA radar.
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