Latest news with #CF-18
Canada Standard
13-05-2025
- General
- Canada Standard
Royal Canadian Air Force CF-18s to conduct flyby for the Canadian Tulip Festival in Ottawa
May 9, 2025 - Ottawa, ON. - National Defence/Canadian Armed Forces Four CF-18 aircraft from 3 Wing Bagotville will fly over Ottawa to mark the start of the Canadian Tulip Festival as part of a commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands. The flyover will take place on May 10th between 11:00 and 11:30 AM over the Tulip Festival beside Dow's Lake in Ottawa. To ensure public safety, the flyovers of Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) aircraft are meticulously planned and closely monitored. They are also dependent on weather and flight conditions. The RCAF is proud to participate in Second World War commemorations in collaboration with Veterans Affairs Canada. For more details about the RCAF and its aircraft, please visit the following website:
Ottawa Citizen
10-05-2025
- Ottawa Citizen
Canadian Tulip Festival kicks off and the hunt for parking spots begins
The Canadian Tulip Festival kicked off on Saturday, marking the 80th year since Canadian forces liberated the Netherlands during the Second World War. Article content Article content Thousands of visitors flocked to Dows Lake to enjoy the warm and sunny afternoon and to take innumerable photos of blooming tulips. Article content Couples walked hand in hand, trying to find open spots, while families wandered around carrying children and walking dogs, soaking in the sunlight and the warmth. Article content Article content Dignitaries, including Gov. Gen. Mary Simon and Ontario Lt.-Gov. Edith Dumont, were guests of honour at the event, and new United States Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra was also in the honour party. Article content Article content A cannon salute marked the end of the opening ceremony, while four CF-18 fighter aircraft flew over the festival grounds to commemorate the anniversary of the end of the war. Article content The beautiful weather was good news for event organizers, but it also meant the revival of annual complaints about rare parking spaces at the festival site. Article content Volunteers at the Canadian Tulip Festival are again encouraging attendees to take public transit or rideshares as street parking spots around the leafy neighbourhood festival site fill up quickly. Article content The festival's official parking lot this year is located at Carleton University (Lot P7), which was full by noon on Saturday. Article content Smaller lots near the festival location were also filled up. Article content Tayah Clairie and Andrew Suthon decided to take in the festival on Saturday because they plan to go out of town next weekend. They said they were lucky to find parking shortly after arriving in the area. Article content Article content 'Somebody was coming out, luckily for us,' Suthon said. Article content If not, he said they likely faced a wait. Article content Clairie agreed traffic was heavy in the area, but she said the festival lived up to its billing. Article content 'We heard that this (is) beautiful, and so far it's definitely lived up to the experience,' she said. Article content A few festival goers also parked on residential streets near Dows Lake. Article content David Hudson, who has lived near the intersection of Dows Lake Road and Kippewa Drive since 2019, said dozens of people will circle the neighbourhood while trying to find free parking for their vehicles. Article content However, he said festival organizers should do even more to encourage people to come to the event, especially since Carleton is an eight-minute walk away. Article content 'It's a great event for two weekends of the year and they should encourage people to park here. We should do something to make it easier for people to attend,' Hudson said. Article content Sonia Juillet, a tulip festival volunteer, encourages festival goers to take public transit if they can. There is an LRT station right near Dows Lake and OC Transpo bus routes 55, 56 and 85 all have stops in the area. Article content She also suggested people to use rideshares or taxis to get to the Dows Lake Pavilion, where there is an accessible pickup and drop-off area. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content
Ottawa Citizen
10-05-2025
- General
- Ottawa Citizen
Royal Canadian Air Force jets to fly over Tulip Festival in Ottawa
The Royal Canadian Air Force will be flying over the Tulip Festival in Ottawa on Saturday morning. Article content Article content According to a Friday news release, four CF-18 aircraft from 3 Wing Bagotville in Quebec will fly over the capital city to mark the start of the festival. The fly over will also commemorate the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands.
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Buy Canadian has to extend to aerospace and defence if Canada is to defend its borders
Aviation doesn't just move people; it moves economies and shapes history. It has always reflected our national ambition. Canada's aerospace and defence leadership began during the Second World War, when we trained more than 130,000 Allied pilots under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, one of history's largest aviation training efforts. That legacy led United States president Theodore Roosevelt to call Canada the 'aerodrome of democracy.' During that time, Canada made a deliberate decision to build domestic aviation manufacturing capacity, recognizing it as vital for both defence and economic development. That continued after the war, with programs such as the F-86 Sabre, built under licence in Montreal to grow local expertise and supply chains. The government also chose Toronto-made engines from Orenda Engines, a Canadian upgrade that boosted performance and enabled exports. Next came the CF-100 Canuck, a fully Canadian-designed and -built interceptor. It marked the start of CAE Inc.'s flight simulation journey, establishing domestic expertise that now spans civil and military aviation training. The CF-104 Starfighter followed, again built in Canada, enhanced for export, and paired with CAE simulators — first for Canada, then Germany. That marked CAE's first international program and the dawn of a global capability that today helps power North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) readiness. Procurement of aircraft such as the F-86, CF-104, T-33 and CF-5, all built under licence in Montreal, gave Canadair Ltd. the expertise to design its own platforms, like the CT-114 Tutor, still flown by the Snowbirds. That foundation led to the Challenger business jet and, ultimately, to the CRJ and Global Express families — programs that firmly established Bombardier Inc. as a global aerospace leader. Similarly, defence procurement in the 1950s and 1960s supported the development of rugged transport aircraft such as the DHC-3 Otter, DHC-4 Caribou and DHC-5 Buffalo, procured from De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd. in Toronto. These aircraft met Canadian Army and NATO needs and were adopted by the U.S. military. This legacy of innovation led to the development of the Twin Otter and Dash 8, uniquely Canadian aircraft still operating in airline service around the world today. Together with related programs awarded to CAE for simulators and Pratt & Whitney Canada for engines, these procurements helped anchor aerospace innovation and manufacturing across Canada, including Montreal and Toronto, making both cities global aerospace hubs. The CF-18 program in the 1980s followed the same logic. Though not built here, Canada ensured sustainment capability at home, enabling our engineers in Mirabel to manage classified source code critical to our fighters' performance. From the Sabre to the CF-18, the lesson is clear: smart procurement didn't just equip the Canadian Forces; it built a world-class aerospace and defence sector. Today, this sector contributes $29 billion to our economy and supports 218,000 jobs, strengthening trade ties and giving Canada rare full-spectrum aerospace capability. As Canada prepares to boost defence spending, we must learn from this legacy: prioritizing national champions and placing key industrial capabilities at the heart of procurement strategies. If we want to meaningfully contribute to future platforms, such as sixth-generation fighters, we need to start investing now. The Future Aircrew Training Program offers a real-time example of smart procurement. Its 25-year horizon lets CAE and partners invest early in technology, talent and Canada's industrial base. Together with the Future Fighter Lead-in Training initiative, it's a model for how Canada can build sovereign capability. From the outset, industry plays a direct role in shaping, delivering, and sustaining a made-in-Canada solution for the Royal Canadian Air Force. But to be a meaningful contributor to allied readiness, Canada must go beyond procurement and sustainment to play a greater role in delivering critical defence capabilities. That includes meeting our North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) and NATO commitments and integrating more deeply into their industrial bases. In today's defence landscape, simulation, training systems and personnel development are no longer peripheral; they are core to mission readiness. Aerospace and defence is not an industry that rewards hesitation; it rewards action. Canada has built its aerospace industry through smart policy, coupled with innovation and R&D from the private sector, designing iconic aircraft, training those who defend freedom and advancing systems and technologies that safeguard the skies. In an uncertain world, we must treat aerospace and defence as a national strategic priority, engaging industry from the outset, not just as suppliers, but as partners. This ensures sovereign control over critical capabilities essential to our security. I've spent my career championing this industry because I know what it means to our country. It's not just an economic pillar; it's part of our identity and a promise to future generations. It's time to act. The question isn't whether Canada can; it's whether we will. Marc Parent, CM, is chief executive of CAE Inc. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
To Remain Canadian, Our Northern Neighbors Should Become a Little More American
President Donald Trump isn't the first U.S. leader to contemplate annexing Canada, though he may be the first to take the idea seriously in a long time—if he is serious. The "51st state" comments and maps of a unified North America could be an elaborate joke with no obvious punchline. If it's a joke, Canadians aren't amused; they're upset and making plans to defend their country against a hostile takeover. Standing in the way, though, is their country's pathetic excuse for a military, and the severe restrictions, relative to the U.S., that Canada's government imposes on private weapons needed to resist an invasion. If they're to avoid becoming Americans, Canadians need to become a little more American. Thankfully, Trump stands pretty much alone in his obsession with absorbing our harmless northern neighbor. According to Angus Reid Institute pollsters, 60 percent of Americans, including 44 percent of Trump voters, have no interest in seeing Canada become part of the U.S. Probably, nobody wants to find out what that would do to America's fraught political balance. Another 32 percent of Americans "and 42 per cent of Trump voters say they would only be interested if the idea was supported by Canadians." Ninety percent of Canadians say, "no, thanks," so that should be the end of that. But what if Trump and company pushed the issue anyway? Hopefully, those number mean Americans, including those in the U.S. military, would refuse to comply with an invasion plan. At least, Canadians had better hope we would, because their military is in no condition to put up a fight. The Canadian Armed Forces' "objectives since the end of the Cold War have been to sustain four frigates for deployment, 18 CF-18 fighter jets for peacetime operations (12 on alert in Canada and six abroad for NATO), and a half brigade's worth of soldiers (2000-2500) with ancillary capabilities," defense expert Richard Shimooka wrote for Canada's Macdonald-Laurier Institute in 2023. "Among Western states, this is a fairly small contribution." Worse, Shimooka added, the armed forces struggle to maintain even that minimal level of readiness, ensuring that "Canada's military is less capable than ever." Canada's former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reportedly told NATO allies that the country will "never" meet the alliance's defense spending goal. Having piggybacked on American defense for decades, Canadian leaders ensured their country is ripe for the taking should the U.S. turn hostile. That leaves Canadians relying on the prospect of a prolonged guerrilla war to resist a takeover. "A military invasion of Canada would trigger a decades-long violent resistance, which would ultimately destroy the United States," vows Aisha Ahmad, a professor of political science at the University of Toronto. "Trump is delusional if he believes that 40 million Canadians will passively accept conquest without resistance." Ahmad envisions resistance fighters retreating to Canada's rough terrain to be trained by veterans of the country's armed forces. Weapons would flow to the insurgents, she insists, from China and Russia. In fact, Canadians are a bit better armed than Americans usually recognize. The country has an estimated 12.7 million firearms in private hands. That likely underestimates the total given the Canadian government's long-gun registry fiasco, which met with widespread noncompliance before it was abandoned. That said, the Canadian government has been trying to disarm its unfortunate subjects. Also, "restricted" weapons, including handguns and semiautomatic rifles—the most effective weapons for resisting an invasion—are subject to registration. Unless quickly purged, those registration records would be available for use in confiscation efforts by occupying troops. Another concern is that resisting invasion requires an ornery culture that encourages noncompliance with authorities. In the absence of such independence, governments—whether elected or imposed—can exercise power over a docile population. And, despite that long-gun registry resistance, Canadians have a reputation for obedience. "We all like to think in our hearts that we would fight to the bitter end, but I honestly don't think that would be the case," Howard Coombs, director of the Queen's Centre for International and Defence Policy and a veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces, told The Canadian Press. "We don't have a porous border that would allow the shipment of supplies to Canadians.… Is Russia going to ship stuff across Alaska to us? Are we going to get air drops from the U.K.?" Ironically, it's Americans who often have a tense relationship with their own government dating back to the founding of the country in revolution and through various (sometimes violent) acts of resistance to authority. In 1946, returning war veterans who found a corrupt gang in charge of Athens, Tennessee, and the surrounding county tossed them out with gunfire and dynamite. Americans are well-armed with mostly unregistered guns. Making firearms at home is a popular pastime in the U.S. My family vacation this year will be a week-long defensive pistol class at the same facility where my wife's rabbi and members of her synagogue trained to defend their house of worship. This is the kind of culture that lends itself to fighting a hostile takeover. Perhaps it's no surprise, then, that George S. Rigakos, a Carleton University professor of the political economy of policing, rests many of his hopes for Canadian sovereignty on American resistance. "An attempted annexation would not only provoke resistance in Canada, but also ignite widespread unrest in the U.S.," he wrote last month. "Combined with existing partisan divides, this would likely shatter U.S. political unity and inevitably lead to armed secessionist movements." This might well be true. But it's another sad example of Canadians hoping Americans will save their bacon (both the real stuff and the ham slices Canadians call by the name). Canadians won't want to hear it, but if they're to remain Canadian, they need to drop some dysfunctional qualities they've adopted to distinguish themselves from their neighbors to the south. They should build a national defense worthy of the name. That will take time. More quickly accomplished is to permanently abandon registration of "restricted"—or any—firearms and ease the purchase and ownership of a wider range of weapons useful for personal and national defense. Armed people are harder to conquer. While they wait for their government to change, Canadian salvation may lie with friends to the south. Despite President Trump's ridiculous protectionism, the U.S. has a proud history of thwarting trade barriers with smuggling. Americans unsympathetic to annexation fantasies might help supply Canadians with the hardware necessary for an insurgency, for the right price. To keep from being forcibly being converted to American—or any other nationality—Canadians need to become just a little more American. The post To Remain Canadian, Our Northern Neighbors Should Become a Little More American appeared first on
