Air Force accepts first new search-and-rescue plane
The Canadian military has accepted the first of 16 new search-and-rescue planes despite outstanding issues with the aircraft’s manuals.
The new plane was officially handed over by European manufacturer Airbus to the Royal Canadian Air Force in Spain last week.
It was supposed to have delivered on Dec. 1, but that date was pushed back due to disagreements between the company, the Air Force and the Department of National Defence over the contents of the aircrafts’ manuals.
The manuals are thousands of pages thick and provide pilots, aircrew and technicians with necessary instructions and references for safely operating and maintaining the aircraft.
Despite the plane’s successful delivery, Defence Department spokesman Daniel Le Bouthillier says the government is reviewing the manuals with the company to ensure they meet the military’s requirements.
He adds that the plane will remain in Spain until the middle of next year as Air Force members train on the aircraft and test it before flying it to Canadian Forces Base Comox in British Columbia.
“The acceptance of the first aircraft is one of many steps in this complex program to replace the current fixed-wing search and rescue fleets,” Le Bouthillier said in an email.
“We will continue to work with Airbus to ensure the acceptability of remaining work, including revision of technical manuals, completing training for the initial RCAF crews and conducting initial operational testing and evaluation in Spain in the first half of 2020.”
The federal government announced three years ago that it would pay Airbus $2.4-billion for 16 CC-295 aircraft to replace the Air Force’s ancient Buffalo search-and-rescue planes and an old version of the RCAF’s Hercules aircraft.
The deal, which includes an option to pay Airbus another $2.3-billion to maintain and support the plane for 15 years, had been held up as one of the few major successes for Canada’s beleaguered military procurement system in recent years.
