So eventually it will be answered. Thank you.
Colonel Burt, we saw an exchange of a lot of e-mails. You're becoming pretty public these days. I saw some in the newspaper, Le Devoir, and from CanWest, on a series of issues.
It's a bit troubling. We surely don't question your integrity. You have a great reputation. You're a man of integrity. You're one of our greatest experts on the requirements, and you clearly know how to deal with an SOR.
What's troubling me is what happened after the famous meeting on May 1 with General O'Connor.
You've been saying since the beginning, and starting on April 28, that the requirement for the strategic airlift was based on a certain weight, which is the 43,000 pounds. You were also talking about delivery dates. We all know the process of the strategic airlift took years and years, and it seems that within weeks we changed some of those requirements. Why was it amended on April 28, from your initial e-mail saying we should have a competition between the two companies?
I'm not biased. As a matter of fact, all I care about is that we have the best equipment. But because it's taxpayers' money, I'd like to make sure it is fair and well spent. We all agree on that.
By some intervention, it seems we changed the way the procurement was put together. We took out the A400M. That's a bit troubling, because perception sometimes is reality.
What happened after April 28? Something also happened between May 1 and June 13. I believe the integrity of the SOR was not necessarily honoured because we had some political intervention.
Would you please expand on that situation? I noticed some of the e-mails that Major Goulden, you, and the others talked about. What happened in the timeframe?