Minister of National Defence Remarks at the Aerospace, Defence, and Security Expo (ADSE)
National Defence
Speech
August 9, 2024
Thanks, Tracy, for that kind introduction.
Good afternoon everyone, bonjour tout le monde.
To Mike and the entire team at the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada — thank you for hosting this great event - the largest of its kind in Western Canada.
To our international visitors: welcome to Canada - or welcome back. We're honoured to have you here with us.
Thank you for your partnership.
Jens Stoltenberg, the Secretary General of NATO, is fond of saying that "without industry, there is no defence."
I couldn't agree more.
Your industry is a pillar of our ability to keep Canada safe.
Right across Canada, tens of thousands of workers in the Canadian defence and aerospace industries go to work every day, and contribute to our mission.
Our partnership is vital.
Our work together provides the Canadian Armed Forces with modern, well-maintained equipment. It bolsters our national resilience, and it grows our economy.
In fact, Canada's aerospace sector contributed roughly $29 billion dollars in GDP and close to 218,000 jobs to the economy last year alone.
Your innovation ensures that the Canadian Armed Forces have access to the most cutting-edge, modern technology available.
And your leadership ensures that Canada's military is well-equipped and well-prepared for every challenge.
Today, I'd like to speak about the work we're doing with you, and to address future of our partnership.
First, let me acknowledge that this is a truly exciting time to be an aviator in Canada.
This year, we are marking 100 years of the Royal Canadian Air Force.
And as we mark this anniversary, we're in the process of making the largest investment in the Royal Canadian Air Force since the Second World War.
We are recapitalizing and rebuilding the Royal Canadian Air Force from top to bottom - and replacing almost all of the RCAF's core fleets.
In just two years, Canada will take delivery of our first F-35 fighter jets, which will be the core of the RCAF's combat power for decades.
And in every F-35 - not just in Canada's fleet but in the global fleet of 3,000 aircraft - you will find Canadian components, built by Canadian workers, here on Canadian soil.
These jets will enable Canada to meet our NORAD and NATO commitments with a state-of-the-art fighter capability.
And each of them is a symbol of what our aerospace workers can do - and what your industry is capable of.
As we've outlined over the past few months, we're also investing in new fleets of Tanker and Transport aircraft with Airbus - which will be critical enablers for our fighter jets, and military operations across the globe.
And, as warfighting continues to evolve, modern drone capabilities are vital for militaries to maintain an edge in the battle space. Last year, we finalized contracts for a new fleet of Reaper drones, in partnership with the SkyGuardian Team of Canadian and American industry partners.
Now, as you've heard me say, Canada is the country with the largest coastline in the world - and we have an obligation to keep it safe, especially as our Arctic becomes more accessible.
In November of last year, we made the decision to acquire up to 16 P-8 Poseidon aircraft from Boeing, with the first aircraft set to arrive in 2026.
And we've developed a strong partnership with Boeing, which is bringing benefits to Canada's aerospace sector.
Just two days ago, I visited Boeing Vancouver, where Boeing announced a $61 million dollar investment in British Columbia's aviation industry.
That includes a major investment in Boeing's Vancouver facility to boost support aircraft sustainability and performance.
Boeing is also investing in skills training for Indigenous workers to help them fill highly-skilled, well-paying jobs in the Canadian aerospace sector.
In fact, over the life of this contract, Boeing will be investing approximately $5.4 billion dollars into Canada's aerospace industry — and this project is expected to generate over 3,500 jobs annually in Canada.
This project is a prime example of how investments in defence are also investments in Canadian industry, Canadian workers and the Canadian economy.
And as we continue to recapitalize our Armed Forces, and bring our defence spending up to 2% of GDP, we'll continue to focus on creating real value for Canada.
British Columbian companies are an integral part of our national aerospace industry, too.
Tracy - your company, KF Aerospace, and Montreal's CAE are working together through the SkyAlyne partnership to deliver a new training program for the Royal Canadian Air Force.
Once the program is fully operational, SkyAlyne will be training a new generation of RCAF pilots, air combat systems officers, and sensor operators on more than 70 aircraft in total, both fixed-wing and helicopters.
This program will help our Air Force generate highly-skilled, professional aviators. And it will create or maintain 3,400 jobs - building up expertise and capability in our domestic aerospace industry.
Taken together, these projects form the largest recapitalization and reinvestment in the Royal Canadian Air Force since the Second World War. Indeed, in the last two years, we've finalized agreements for over 200 new aircraft for the RCAF.
As our Air Force Commander is fond of saying, the Air Force of 2035 will look almost completely different from the Air Force of today.
But I want to be clear: we've got more to do.
We've got to keep going. And we will.
With our new defence policy, Our North, Strong and Free, you've seen our path laid out clearly.
As you know, this policy invests an additional $73 billion dollars over the next 20 years to bolster our national defence - with job number one being the defence of Canada, and North America.
It's especially relevant at a time when NORAD is being called upon to intercept Russian and Chinese military aircraft operating together in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone, as occurred on July 24.
As our Arctic becomes more accessible to potential adversaries, we've got to do more.
That's why this policy invests in everything from new maritime sensors, to new defence infrastructure in the North, to new, long-range missiles.
And, this policy tells the aerospace industry exactly where we are going. With the funding in this policy, we will invest in new fleets of aircraft to help us detect threats, and respond to them.
This policy fully funds the acquisition of more modern, mobile, and effective tactical helicopters.
This new capability will provide the RCAF with a more modern aircraft to respond to natural disasters and emergencies here at home and support our Allies on missions around the world.
This policy also funds new airborne early warning aircraft, and we've already begun the process of identifying our requirements.
This capability will vastly improve our ability to detect, track and prioritize airborne threats to Canada sooner, while enhancing the effectiveness of our new fighter, sub-hunter and drone fleets.
So, there's a lot more that your industry and our department will do together. But we don't just need to do more; we also can do it better.
As we developed this policy update, I met with many of you, and many of your companies.
You told us that you needed clarity and certainty.
You told us that you needed transparency and trust.
And you told us that you needed the predictability of reliable funding, long-term contracts, and a defence procurement system that gets the job done more efficiently.
As some of you may remember from AIAC's National Aerospace Summit last fall, I told you that I'd asked my team to refine the policy.
And I was very clear: this defence policy needed to be an industrial policy too.
I sincerely hope that you have seen your input reflected in that document. Because we've taken a number of steps that I think will be transformative:
- We have now locked in $9.5 billion dollars over 20 years to scale up the production of battle-decisive munitions, as an example.
- With this investment, we're going to strengthen our ammunition production capacity right here in Canada so that our military will have the stockpiles it needs and so that you have the certainty that you need to scale up.
- We'll also be piloting a Continuous Capability Sustainment approach to upgrading our equipment. Rather than simply upgrading our equipment in fits and starts, we intend to rapidly integrate the latest technology and innovations in far more frequent and predictable cycles that will create new opportunities for all of you.
- And, we have launched a review of our Defence Procurement System, focused on making it faster and more flexible.
All of these steps will help us scale up production and build a more resilient defence industrial base.
Because we need to maintain our edge over our adversaries and competitors.
And we need to be at the forefront of innovation - in lockstep with our closest Allies and partners.
I believe that Our North, Strong and Free is more than just a defence plan.
It's an industry plan. A jobs plan.
A plan to ramp up production.
But to get the job done, we've got to do it in real partnership with you all.
We can do this. And we will do this.
With the largest investments in the RCAF in generations, we're already doing some great work together.
But we can do even more. And we can be smarter, and more strategic.
In the coming months, I want to keep hearing from industry about how we can deliver on all the projects in this defence policy across all domains.
Let us know how we can support you, and how you can support us.
And above all, let's keep this vital conversation going.
Canada's defence and security depends on our trust, and on our partnership.
Thanks again to Mike and AIAC, and to all of you. Merci beaucoup.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
