OTTAWA --- Fourteen years will have elapsed from the time National Defence identified the need to modernize 80 of its CF-18 fighter aircraft until the first phase of upgrades is completed in 2006. But now that upgrades are proceeding, they are going reasonably well, says Sheila Fraser, the Auditor General of Canada, in her Report tabled today in the House of Commons.
The challenge for National Defence is to finish the upgrades on time so that full advantage can be taken of improvements before the aircraft reach the end of their useful lives.
“The CF-18 project team worked hard to overcome problems and keep much of this complicated project on track and within contract costs,” said Ms. Fraser.
The Department was able to minimize the impact of delays in two of its projects. At the time of the audit, Canada had taken delivery of 33 upgraded fighter jets, which are now being flown and are meeting the Department’s performance expectations.
The Department plans to fly the CF-18 until 2017, at which time the airframe is expected to be close to its maximum flying time. Therefore, the sooner the upgrades are installed, the longer National Defence can fly the aircraft with modernized equipment on board.
The audit identified some problems—staff shortages, approval delays, and deficiencies in risk management and project management. Unless addressed, these problems could delay the successful completion of the project and prevent the Department from getting the full benefits of its investment in the CF-18 upgrade.
“The Department needs to complete this upgrade on schedule by 2009 in order to take full advantage of its projected C$2.6 billion investment,” said Ms. Fraser.
Ms. Fraser also noted that the Department needs to ensure that it has enough qualified pilots, maintenance technicians, spare parts, and funding to keep the upgraded CF-18 fleet fully operational until the expected end of its useful life. (ends)
EDITOR’S NOTE: While this point is not mentioned in the above press release, the Auditor-General’s report expressed concern that the decision to upgrade just 80 of Canada’s CF-18 fighters was made without any analysis of the air force's real needs, and that of the 80 upgraded aircraft only 34 will be available for front-line service. We reproduce the salient excerpt from the Auditor-General’s report below.)
Excerpt: Decision to Upgrade 80 aircraft.
“We expected to find an analysis to support why the Department chose 80 aircraft as the number to modify. We expected that this analysis would take into account the many variables affecting the estimated useful life of the aircraft, including its expected attrition rate, age, and roles as defined in National Defence policy.
“We were unable to find such an analysis. However, Department officials told us that upgrading 80 CF-18s was reasonable, financially. Yet, new threats to North America in light of global events over the past two years may increase the demands on the upgraded 80-aircraft fleet and may put even greater pressure on the Air Force to manage its fatigue life, maintenance, and flying hours.
“Air Force analysis indicates that modernizing 80 aircraft does not mean that 80 aircraft would be available on a daily basis. The planned allocation of the 80 CF-18s is four operational squadrons of 12 aircraft each, with the remaining 32 available for training, testing and evaluation, and depot level maintenance. Of the 48 aircraft in operational squadrons, only 70 percent, or 34, are normally mission-ready on a daily basis.
“With an expected attrition rate of one aircraft every two years, National Defence has recommended a review of how well the modernized 80-aircraft fleet will meet Canada's ongoing commitments, particularly in a post-September 11, 2001 environment.” (end of excerpt)
Click here for the full report, on the Auditor-General of Canada website (HTML format)
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Upgrading the CF-18 Fighter Aircraft: First Phase is on Time and within Budget
