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Time running out on Canada's Hercules planes
Transport aircraft lost to old age
Harper urged to tackle the problem
Feb. 20, 2006. 01:00 AM
BRUCE CAMPION-SMITH
OTTAWA B UREAU
OTTAWA—Old age has claimed another Hercules transport aircraft — considered the lifelines for Canadian troops abroad — fuelling fears the military may soon "fall flat on its face" when called on to respond to an international crisis, experts say.
Air force officials confirm that for the second time in the past year, they've taken a decades-old Hercules out of service because it has "run out of hours," meaning it cannot fly without a costly, time-consuming retrofit to its airframe.
The military also expects two more Hercules, also known as C-130s, will be grounded for the same reason over the coming year, leaving just 28 of the transports for flying duties at home and abroad.
Already, the Canadian Forces rely on leased civilian transports to ferry the tonnes of supplies needed by Canadian troops in Afghanistan.
Deterioration of the Hercules fleet only adds to the pressure on the new Conservative government to find a replacement for the venerable C-130s, and fast.
"The problem is becoming acute," said retired Gen. Paul Manson, a former fighter pilot who served as chief of the defence staff in the late 1980s.
"The government of the day has got to solve this problem and solve it pretty darn fast or Canada will be faced with a situation where it falls flat on its face when called upon to take part in some operation around the globe," he said in an interview.
Add in the fact that the remaining Hercules are available for flights only 60 per cent of the time due to necessary maintenance and Canada's air force has the makings of an airlift crisis, experts say.
The Liberal government announced last fall that it would spend upwards of $5 billion to purchase 16 new transports. The newer-model Hercules, the C-130J, is considered the frontrunner but Airbus is pushing to have its A400M considered, while Boeing has been touting its C-17, a jet able to haul gear long distances.
Gen. Rick Hillier, chief of the defence staff, has conceded the current fleet would be "almost completely in operational" by the time the replacement aircraft arrive in about three years.
Even that timeline is optimistic, given it typically takes upwards of 15 years for the Forces to acquire new equipment.
Manson said the air force can ill afford a long, drawn-out selection process for new transports.
"A decade from now who knows if any of those Hercs could still be flyable," said Manson, who is president of the non-partisan Conference of Defence Associations Institute, which promotes defence discussion.
Canada's Hercules are the oldest in the world. Industry sources say the military can expect to lose two of the aircraft a year to old age.
The air force is looking at "all the options" to see what can be done to ease the pressure on the fleet, said Lt.-Cmdr. Nathalie Garcia, a military spokesperson.
C-130s are also on constant standby at air bases in Trenton, Greenwood, N.S., and Winnipeg for search and rescue work.
One option has been to rely on civilian transports, as it is doing now in Afghanistan. Two ships carried the Canadians' equipment to Turkey from Canada. From there, leased IL-76s — Russian-built transports — have flown the supplies to Kandahar. Officials expect it will take 135 flights to move what's required by more 2,000 Canadian troops moving into the region. The IL-76s will also carry out weekly resupply runs from Trenton.
Transport aircraft lost to old age
Harper urged to tackle the problem
Feb. 20, 2006. 01:00 AM
BRUCE CAMPION-SMITH
OTTAWA B UREAU
OTTAWA—Old age has claimed another Hercules transport aircraft — considered the lifelines for Canadian troops abroad — fuelling fears the military may soon "fall flat on its face" when called on to respond to an international crisis, experts say.
Air force officials confirm that for the second time in the past year, they've taken a decades-old Hercules out of service because it has "run out of hours," meaning it cannot fly without a costly, time-consuming retrofit to its airframe.
The military also expects two more Hercules, also known as C-130s, will be grounded for the same reason over the coming year, leaving just 28 of the transports for flying duties at home and abroad.
Already, the Canadian Forces rely on leased civilian transports to ferry the tonnes of supplies needed by Canadian troops in Afghanistan.
Deterioration of the Hercules fleet only adds to the pressure on the new Conservative government to find a replacement for the venerable C-130s, and fast.
"The problem is becoming acute," said retired Gen. Paul Manson, a former fighter pilot who served as chief of the defence staff in the late 1980s.
"The government of the day has got to solve this problem and solve it pretty darn fast or Canada will be faced with a situation where it falls flat on its face when called upon to take part in some operation around the globe," he said in an interview.
Add in the fact that the remaining Hercules are available for flights only 60 per cent of the time due to necessary maintenance and Canada's air force has the makings of an airlift crisis, experts say.
The Liberal government announced last fall that it would spend upwards of $5 billion to purchase 16 new transports. The newer-model Hercules, the C-130J, is considered the frontrunner but Airbus is pushing to have its A400M considered, while Boeing has been touting its C-17, a jet able to haul gear long distances.
Gen. Rick Hillier, chief of the defence staff, has conceded the current fleet would be "almost completely in operational" by the time the replacement aircraft arrive in about three years.
Even that timeline is optimistic, given it typically takes upwards of 15 years for the Forces to acquire new equipment.
Manson said the air force can ill afford a long, drawn-out selection process for new transports.
"A decade from now who knows if any of those Hercs could still be flyable," said Manson, who is president of the non-partisan Conference of Defence Associations Institute, which promotes defence discussion.
Canada's Hercules are the oldest in the world. Industry sources say the military can expect to lose two of the aircraft a year to old age.
The air force is looking at "all the options" to see what can be done to ease the pressure on the fleet, said Lt.-Cmdr. Nathalie Garcia, a military spokesperson.
C-130s are also on constant standby at air bases in Trenton, Greenwood, N.S., and Winnipeg for search and rescue work.
One option has been to rely on civilian transports, as it is doing now in Afghanistan. Two ships carried the Canadians' equipment to Turkey from Canada. From there, leased IL-76s — Russian-built transports — have flown the supplies to Kandahar. Officials expect it will take 135 flights to move what's required by more 2,000 Canadian troops moving into the region. The IL-76s will also carry out weekly resupply runs from Trenton.
