OK RCAF, RNZAF or F-35?

LGen Deschamps, should please just. stop. talking. He does not seem to get just how stupid and corrupted he and his mates are making the RCAF look.

Lt-Gen. André Deschamps, who on Tuesday said the air force is preparing to acquire F-35s, told MPs that when DND was analysing options for new planes it looked at what technology is needed to respond to future threats. He said those threats include the proliferation of advanced surface-to-air missile systems in some countries, he didn't name which ones, and said today's aircraft aren't well-equipped to respond to the "deadly" systems.

If any of them really must speak publicly, the can say something like, "My job, in concert with the Army and Navy, is to defend Canada to the best of my ability with whatever equipment Canadians are able to provide."

But they won't do that. We see with the reference to "proliferation of advanced surface-to-air missile systems in some countries" that RCAF brass are still hung up on the first strike option in coalition air campaigns. The day Canada joins the US in sending warplanes to attack a country with a credible air defence system is the day Canada finds itself in war way too big for a tiny air force. That won't be the 'safe' air war of today where you can fly across the Med or Adriatic, drop a few bombs in undefended airspace and be home for dinner. I pray Deschamps' fighter pilots don't have to find out what it feels like to be an infanteer in Khandahar province, or maybe the RAF in the early days of the first Gulf War...or worse.

You know, at this point, I don't particularly give a damn whether the RCAF gets a new fighter. They're coming off like spoiled children by suggesting Canadians today and 40 years in the future pay for their testosterone-fueled fantasy. If they can't have an adult conversation about what's needed to defend Canada, and show their homework, they don't make a case for any new aeroplane let alone their jobs. If they can't find a solid rationale, perhaps we should look at modelling our air force on the RNZAF (hint: what's missing from the list?). Save the money and put it in health and education, you know, things that provide real security...