Government Operations committee  Thank you very much for the question. I want to thank the committee for the work it is doing. When we see what is happening in Europe right now, we are fortunate to have the government structures we do, which demonstrate considerable intellectual rigour. I am not a procurement expert, and I would prefer not to comment on what could be improved or to give your committee advice.

Government Operations committee  I apologize, but I don't know the cost of ground equipment. Could you clarify your question?

Government Operations committee  Thank you for the clarification. The ground-based air defence system is the responsibility of the Canadian Army. So as an airman representing the Royal Canadian Air Force, it would be difficult for me to answer that question. I'm sorry.

Government Operations committee  As I mentioned earlier, the Royal Canadian Air Force is really keen to deliver on its mission set that has been dictated to us by “Strong, Secure, Engaged” in Canada's defence policy, so our goal is to make sure we meet Canada's expectation of its Royal Canadian Air Force. That said, one of the primary roles for our air force is to be interoperable with NORAD, NATO and Five Eyes partners.

Government Operations committee  I would like to say that the 88 fighters that the RCAF has identified as the magic number, if you will, are based on the mandate that has been given to the Royal Canadian Air Force in Canada's defence strategy, “Strong, Secure, Engaged”. We went into a detailed analysis. This amount of aircraft will enable us to fulfill our mission requirements, first for NORAD, then for Arctic sovereignty and things of that nature, and for NATO, as well.

Government Operations committee  The Royal Canadian Air Force put in its operational requirement the high-level monetary requirement that we need for operational capability. Interoperability is right up there with our NORAD and NATO partners. I expect that any platform that is selected will meet that high-level monetary requirement.

Government Operations committee  Thank you for the question. I will say that all airmen and airwomen in the Royal Canadian Air Force are looking forward to the decision and to working with the new fighter. At this point, it would be inappropriate for me to give an opinion as to what type of aircraft the airmen and airwomen of the Royal Canadian Air Force want to fly, since Canada is in an open and transparent process.

Government Operations committee  Thank you very much for the question. I want to say that at the Royal Canadian Air Force, our organization has no shortage of candidates who want to become airmen and airwomen. Of course, in the last few years, due to the pandemic, it has been a little more difficult to recruit people because of all the public health measures in place.

Government Operations committee  Thank you very much for your appreciation of all CAF members. I will highlight that, unfortunately, in my capacity as a representative of the Royal Canadian Air Force, I cannot speak on NORAD at this stage. As I mentioned earlier, the Royal Canadian Air Force trains and supplies the personnel and equipment to NORAD, and NORAD employs those forces readily, but unfortunately it would be improper for me in my capacity this afternoon to answer the question that you posed.

Government Operations committee  Again, at this stage, I think it would be improper for me as an air force representative to comment on NORAD's steps forward and what NORAD intends to do for its modernization. I'm sorry I cannot provide more at this stage.

Government Operations committee  Could I please request a bit more information on the question? What do we mean by Arctic air defence? Do we mean within the NORAD umbrella?

Government Operations committee  For any specific NORAD missions, I would respectfully refer you to the NORAD authorities. In my capacity as the RCAF representative this afternoon, I just want to mention that the Royal Canadian Air Force, of course, generates the personnel to support the NORAD missions, so we train the fighter pilots, the maintainers, all the air personnel, the controllers, and all that.

Government Operations committee  I would like to start by saying that it is a new capability. We don't know exactly which platform we're going to get, so it is hard for us at this time to start training any air force personnel towards that mission. In any of these procurements, as soon as we have an identified platform, we will then put forward a training plan that will be effective in meeting both the initial appraisal capability and the final appraisal capability in due time.

Government Operations committee  Thank you. From an air force perspective, we identified the high-level monetary requirements for the aircraft. What we need for Canada is an aircraft that is multirole and that can be a good jack of all trades. At this stage, that's pretty much all I can offer. We have a relatively small air force but a proud one and one that is renowned to be extremely capable for its size.

Government Operations committee  According to Canada's defence policy, Strong, Secure, Engaged, we must fulfill our mandate as a NORAD partner and member of NATO. That does mean we have to be a versatile force in order to complete the missions assigned to us.