via Reuters.
Dec 19 (Reuters) - Canada, which has a history of recent military procurement mishaps, will scrap a C$2 billion ($1.9 billion) plan to buy armored vehicles for the land forces, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp said on Thursday.I never really expected this program to survive. The Canadian Army didn't seem enthused about it and quite honestly it was hard to justify.
The Conservative government announced in 2009 it would buy 108 so-called close combat vehicles designed to have enough protection to fend off the blast from mines and anti-armor weapons.
At the time Canadian forces were still active in Afghanistan. They stopped combat operations in 2011.
The three companies in the running were France's Nexter, Britain's BAE Systems Plc and General Dynamics Corp's Land Systems unit.
A spokeswoman for Defence Minister Rob Nicholson declined to comment on the report, saying military officials would make an announcement about the project in the near future.
Canada's Conservatives have experienced a series of procurement problems since taking power in 2006.
Last month, an official spending watchdog said Ottawa had underestimated how much a multibillion-dollar naval shipbuilding plan will cost.
In 2010, the government said it would buy 65 advanced F-35 jets from Lockheed-Martin Corp C$9 billion, but tore up the proposed deal in 2012 after the same watchdog said officials had deliberately downplayed the costs and risks.
Other problems include a plan to buy military trucks that was scrapped in July 2012 just minutes before the final deadline for applications.
The hits. Keep. Coming.
I can't speak for the Canadian Army, but the Infantry Corps seemed pretty interested in this vehicle, at least at the battalion level. Meanwhile, we are going ahead with the TAPV for the armoured recce, light infantry and infantry recce roles, despite my never having heard a positive word from anyone in any of those positions. I am sure the brass and public affairs type love it, but it has been panned across the board from every soldier I have ever heard talk about it. But what do the troops know, eh?
ReplyDeleteLooks like they unlearned the lessons from Afghanistan. Don't worry, F-35s should be able to provide ground support in lieu of IFVs.
ReplyDeleteAdd Canada to the list of Western/NATO nations who are becoming militarily irrelevant. They are becoming hollow forces fit for parades and an occasional UN peacekeeping mission.
An even clearer sign that the US, if it does go to war, won't have anyone from Western Europe backing it up. The nations in Europe we can work with are those who actually take defense seriously like Poland, Denmark, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, etc.
We need to be looking at South Korea, Japan, Australia, Phillipines, Singapore and India as the partners with whom we must work and coordinate and leave old Europe to wither on the vine.
With Russia surveying the arctic and Canada about to claim the North Pole I'd think an up armored IFV version Snow cat with a turret would be more better. There is the Kodiak that the US DARPA is researching. Not to be confused with the LAV III Kodiak.
ReplyDeleteThe German's were studying the PUMA as a cold weather ops vehicle but would that be arctic conditions far beyond just being cold weather?
Too go for a future vehicle a hover craft or fan boat type design would seem practical on flat ice and snow broken ice though and ice over water might keep a tank like vehicle not practical due to weight.
Has the M-1 Abrams ever operated well north of the arctic circle in winter?
IED in the snow? Might happen.
What kind of combat would be fought at the North polar regions? I'd say mostly Infantry which needs a carrier vehicle but if there are tanks then the question is, How big a tank?
ReplyDeleteI researched Finland's war with the Soviets in WW2 and learned the T-34 and the KV-1/2 were used but that wasn't over pack ice and far arctic conditions.
Wait a second, so these vehicles were going to cost about 20M USD each, thats insane. What is that, a German BOXER IFV with a what, 30-40mm cannon on it, yep checked and that was what it was. They could have gotten like 1.3K patria AMVs with that (which would form the basis of a strong mechanized infantry force), then done an upgrade program later on to add ADS and put bigger turrets on some of them.... Western military procurement is such a scam!
ReplyDeleteAnd if they want something that makes big boom, with big armour I am sure they can pick up, overhaul and modernize some T72s for like 1.25M if they keep an eye out, then do an upgrade later on like the chinese did with the type 99.
Nice tanks. and well written post dear. Thanks for sharing it. trio pines & heavy duty pneumatic casters
ReplyDelete