BEST FIGHTER FOR CANADA

We've done the impossible...  And that makes us mighty. -Captain Malcom Reynolds (Firefly)  The people of Canada spoke loud and clear last night.   After a record long campaign, the Liberal Party of Canada emerged victorious as the new government-elect.  One of the highlights of their platform  was to " immediately launch an open and transparent competition to replace the CF-18 fighter aircraft.”  Liberal leader Justin Trudeau has gone on the record stating that the F-35's  “stealth first-strike capability” is not needed to defend Canada, and the funds saved by going with a  more affordable aircraft would be used to shore up Canada's already-troubled National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy (NSPS). Canada's election results are already sending a ripple throughout the Joint Strike Fighter program.  If the LPC keeps its promise, we will be the first major JSF partner to walk away from the program.  This could give other potential F-35 buyers second

On October 19th, you and I will get to have our ultimate say, not just about the CF-18 replacement, but about our nation as a whole. As always, I encourage you to vote.  I will not tell you which party to vote for, as that is your own personal choice.  For most of you, a political party's stance on fighter jets is not the number one issue facing our country.  It is an issue, however, otherwise you would not be here. For those who have might have missed it, here are the three major parties' stance on the CF-18 replacement and military procurement in general.  (I will ignore the Green Party and Bloc Quebecois as they have no chance of actually forming government.) "I once caught a fish this...  Is that person wearing a niqab?"  While the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) has not come right out and said it, it seems pretty clear that they will continue "business as usual" when it comes to the F-35.  Since 2011, they have vaguely "reset"

Don't worry.  This is a one-parter. It comes around on a seemingly regular basis. Either here, in the Facebook group, or some other media; someone will spout off that golden nugget that attempts to put a nail through everything I and others like me have tried to do over the last few years.  That nugget reads like the following: Those close to the F-35 program sing its praises.  Its critics are those who have never flown on it or worked on it.   It raises an interesting point. Why trust a random blogger over test pilot who flies the aircraft?  Why trust a scathing aviation reporter when official press releases are saying everything is tickety-boo?  What does it matter to us, anyway?  It isn't as if we will ever fly this airplane. While it is true that us aviation enthusiasts, bloggers, critics, and other layman are not as "connected" with the program as the pilots, executives, and politicians anchoring their careers to the JSF, there is a very large d