Friday, November 23, 2012  Canadian government response to AG
report is useless  The Canadian government has put forward a
response to a previous Auditor General effort on the countries
proposed CF-18 fighter replacement.  This response is basically
useless for the following reasons:  -It mentions a 2009  U.S.
select acquisition report about the F-35 but does not mention
the latest one which is even more troublesome. This includes the
fact that the latest SAR has separated costing of the airframe
and motor.  -There is no direct reference on flying hour
assumptions per year for each aircraft. For example with current
ops budgets, Canada might be able to afford flying 30 or so
F-35s per year. And that is generous because it allows for a
fleet of non-faulty aircraft.  -There is no mention of a severe
2011 report by the U.S. about F-35 engineering difficulty.
-Throughout the response one gets the impression that few, if
any, Canadian government decision-makers have any grasp of F-35
risks.  There is more, but in