Lougheed Martin is so far behind in their orders it is sickening to listen to dump and his gang.
Canada ordered 16 or 18 fighter jets over 4 years ago. When my granddaughter was training in NS she was told she would be going to the US to train on these new planes. That was over 2 years ago, and we still do not have one plane nor any training for potential staff.
I read recently that the first of our 16 planes will be available in August. With them delayed so much why on earth would they think that Canadian should buy another 88 planes from them?
Especially after they just took a big order from the United Arab Emirates for the same plane. On top of that, the price of the planes that we ordered have gone up I believe three times already.
Obviously, this manufacturer cannot do the job efficiently and on time. I think they should be paying a customer a penalty for not being on time. That is why it's absolutely necessary to diversify and not buy all the jets from there, but that's just my lowly opinion. 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
And then there’s Japan who bought and paid for 7.2 billion dollars worth of US military equipment including F-35’s, E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning systems and other necessary equipment in 2018, and still haven’t received even a single bullet. And there is no cancelling and getting their money back, they are stuck waiting till the US gets around to it.
Holy smokes, that is such poor business management practices or outright theft???
I'll be the owner or owners of Lockheed Martin is a friend of rumps! I don't know this for a fact, but I'm just speculating
When you hear stories like that, it is little wonder that other places are starting to manufacture, weapons and airplanes, etc. nobody can be backed up from 2018 to 2026 and not have to give them a refund!
Good work; however, I was looking for a Canadian segue. We long ago suffered the consequence of American military-industrial bullying. We must expect a vigorous reaction to our new defence industrial policies.
I see Europe’s pivot to local manufacturing mirroring what is happening right here in Ottawa. I was recently looking at the new Defence Industrial Strategy records. Historically, Canada shipped roughly 75 cents of every military procurement dollar straight to the United States. Now, the government wants to award 70 percent of defense contracts to domestic companies. It makes total sense politically. If taxpayers fund a massive military budget to hit NATO targets (the alliance's minimum spending rule), voters expect those jobs in Canadian factories.
No surprise: Trump has singlehandedly destroyed the US armament export industry last March, when Ukraine's F-16s and Patriot batteries remained inert for more than a day. A worried Zelenskyy contacted him, discreetly; the equipment started working again.
A wave of shock crossed the world as everyone realized the bone-chilling implications. Did US fighter jets and military equipment have "killswitches" that could be remotely activated? This news was soon hushed down, so shattering the implications were.
Portugal postponed its order for F-35s. Various diplomatic declarations blurred the situation. It's still pending.
A few days later, Trump declared that the US would sell "toned-down" planes to its customers and allies.
Just yesterday, the US ambassador to Portugal was at it again, putting pressure on Portugal to buy F-35s.
Same thing with Trump threatening NATO members to increase their military spending to 5%. In reality, his goal was to get more sales for the US armament industry; NATO has long been a cash cow for the US.
Unfortunately, threats don't work that well with allies and breaking trade agreements on a whim either. People soon begin to understand you are not a friend.
For a while now, EU countries have understood the urgency and are recentering their military equipment purchases on local production with partners they can trust and count on while keeping money on their own territory and creating jobs and benefits that stay in Europe.
That's Trump's genius: turning everything he touches into crap and waking people up to the necessity of avoiding him at all costs.
The fact is, these events mentioned in March did happen. With equipment that is connected online at all times, there's a possibility of reciprocal action on the machine. Whether the way to disable a machine is caricatured as a cartoonish "button" or considered to be something else, what happened to US equipment in Ukraine did happen.
I witnessed it, particularly through Ukrainian media sources and the many other news sources in 4 languages I followed across Europe. The echo of the shock was palpable. It changed positions.
I was shocked and flabbergasted at seeing this unthinkable, unfathomable action happen and the quickly spreading aftershock that was as quickly hushed. No doubt because the situation was so shocking that left in the open it would have created a diplomatic backlash that could have had destabilizing effects. Nobody wanted an open crisis with the new Trump government. Everyone wanted to avoid escalation and hoped for a return to stability. Everyone hoped that Trump was not that ruthless.
Any search with "Trump killswitch" will bring reports corroborating the fact that in March 2025, Trump did stop Ukraine's US military equipment from working, and that it wasn't only planes. Some say this might have been done through mission planning or other functions, but how it was done doesn't really matter from the perspective of the overall result.
Saw a story where France and Germany are in a spat over aircraft production/design and that now, Germany is considering purchasing more F-35s from the Americans. Any thoughts/info on this story?
Yes Ron... there’s ongoing tension between France and Germany over their joint next-gen fighter project (FCAS). Disagreements about design control, requirements, and industrial share have slowed things down.
Because of that uncertainty, reports came out that Germany might buy more F-35s as a hedge. But Berlin has said no additional purchases are confirmed beyond the jets already ordered.
The bigger picture: Europe wants defence independence, but capability gaps keep pulling countries back toward U.S. equipment. That tension is still unresolved.
YEAH, THE GERMANS, THE FRENCH, THE ENGLISH…. ALL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION NATIONS PUT OUT VERY COMPETITIVE PRODUCT ESPECIALLY ON THE BATTLEFIELD… CHALLENGERS, LEOPARDS, RAFAELS, MIRAGES, ETC ETC ETC ARE ALL WEAPONS PLATFORMS EQUAL TO OR BETTER THAN ANYTHING WE SELL THEM…..
We have been taught all our lives, remember history, so we don’t forget 🫡
Should we also spend 5% of our GDP bcs we didn’t learn our lesson. 🤷♂️. Or is that bcs the global Leadership sucks, and we have to stroke old Donald’s stones …
Lougheed Martin is so far behind in their orders it is sickening to listen to dump and his gang.
Canada ordered 16 or 18 fighter jets over 4 years ago. When my granddaughter was training in NS she was told she would be going to the US to train on these new planes. That was over 2 years ago, and we still do not have one plane nor any training for potential staff.
I read recently that the first of our 16 planes will be available in August. With them delayed so much why on earth would they think that Canadian should buy another 88 planes from them?
Especially after they just took a big order from the United Arab Emirates for the same plane. On top of that, the price of the planes that we ordered have gone up I believe three times already.
Obviously, this manufacturer cannot do the job efficiently and on time. I think they should be paying a customer a penalty for not being on time. That is why it's absolutely necessary to diversify and not buy all the jets from there, but that's just my lowly opinion. 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
You’re raising a real issue Gail.
Military procurement timelines are often much longer than people expect, and delays happen across many countries and programs... not just Canada.
The training pipeline you mentioned is part of that complexity.
Aircraft delivery, pilot training, ground crew preparation, and infrastructure all have to line up. When one piece slips, everything shifts.
The broader question you’re pointing to... diversification and supply risk... is exactly why defence policy discussions are becoming more active now.
Countries don’t like depending too heavily on any single supplier.
It’s a complicated space, but your concern about timing and capacity is completely understandable.
Likely some materials are ones rump put more tariffs on so prices will gouge us again. He is such a crook
Totally agree with you Gail 💯🇨🇦💪🏻
And then there’s Japan who bought and paid for 7.2 billion dollars worth of US military equipment including F-35’s, E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning systems and other necessary equipment in 2018, and still haven’t received even a single bullet. And there is no cancelling and getting their money back, they are stuck waiting till the US gets around to it.
Holy smokes, that is such poor business management practices or outright theft???
I'll be the owner or owners of Lockheed Martin is a friend of rumps! I don't know this for a fact, but I'm just speculating
When you hear stories like that, it is little wonder that other places are starting to manufacture, weapons and airplanes, etc. nobody can be backed up from 2018 to 2026 and not have to give them a refund!
Good work; however, I was looking for a Canadian segue. We long ago suffered the consequence of American military-industrial bullying. We must expect a vigorous reaction to our new defence industrial policies.
I focus on what’s being reported and verified, then look at what it means for Canada.
Sometimes that involves Europe, sometimes the U.S., sometimes Asia... because those shifts affect us directly whether we like it or not.
My goal isn’t to tell people what they want to hear.
It’s to connect the dots on what’s actually happening.
I see Europe’s pivot to local manufacturing mirroring what is happening right here in Ottawa. I was recently looking at the new Defence Industrial Strategy records. Historically, Canada shipped roughly 75 cents of every military procurement dollar straight to the United States. Now, the government wants to award 70 percent of defense contracts to domestic companies. It makes total sense politically. If taxpayers fund a massive military budget to hit NATO targets (the alliance's minimum spending rule), voters expect those jobs in Canadian factories.
Any time the Industrial Military Complex gets kicked in the teeth, it’s a good day!
Well if you insult your clients and put tariffs on them what does Trump expect, reap what you sow
No surprise: Trump has singlehandedly destroyed the US armament export industry last March, when Ukraine's F-16s and Patriot batteries remained inert for more than a day. A worried Zelenskyy contacted him, discreetly; the equipment started working again.
A wave of shock crossed the world as everyone realized the bone-chilling implications. Did US fighter jets and military equipment have "killswitches" that could be remotely activated? This news was soon hushed down, so shattering the implications were.
Portugal postponed its order for F-35s. Various diplomatic declarations blurred the situation. It's still pending.
A few days later, Trump declared that the US would sell "toned-down" planes to its customers and allies.
Just yesterday, the US ambassador to Portugal was at it again, putting pressure on Portugal to buy F-35s.
Same thing with Trump threatening NATO members to increase their military spending to 5%. In reality, his goal was to get more sales for the US armament industry; NATO has long been a cash cow for the US.
Unfortunately, threats don't work that well with allies and breaking trade agreements on a whim either. People soon begin to understand you are not a friend.
For a while now, EU countries have understood the urgency and are recentering their military equipment purchases on local production with partners they can trust and count on while keeping money on their own territory and creating jobs and benefits that stay in Europe.
That's Trump's genius: turning everything he touches into crap and waking people up to the necessity of avoiding him at all costs.
https://militarnyi.com/en/news/unpredictability-of-usa-portugal-rules-out-f-35-fighter-purchase/
There’s a real conversation happening Annie about trust and dependency in defense procurement... especially in Europe.
But the “kill switch” claim on U.S. weapons isn’t supported by credible evidence.
Modern systems can go offline for many technical reasons without implying remote control.
The bigger issue isn’t hidden buttons… it’s political reliability.
Countries are simply diversifying suppliers so they’re not dependent on any single partner.
That’s strategy, not scandal.
The fact is, these events mentioned in March did happen. With equipment that is connected online at all times, there's a possibility of reciprocal action on the machine. Whether the way to disable a machine is caricatured as a cartoonish "button" or considered to be something else, what happened to US equipment in Ukraine did happen.
I witnessed it, particularly through Ukrainian media sources and the many other news sources in 4 languages I followed across Europe. The echo of the shock was palpable. It changed positions.
I was shocked and flabbergasted at seeing this unthinkable, unfathomable action happen and the quickly spreading aftershock that was as quickly hushed. No doubt because the situation was so shocking that left in the open it would have created a diplomatic backlash that could have had destabilizing effects. Nobody wanted an open crisis with the new Trump government. Everyone wanted to avoid escalation and hoped for a return to stability. Everyone hoped that Trump was not that ruthless.
Any search with "Trump killswitch" will bring reports corroborating the fact that in March 2025, Trump did stop Ukraine's US military equipment from working, and that it wasn't only planes. Some say this might have been done through mission planning or other functions, but how it was done doesn't really matter from the perspective of the overall result.
I just happened to pay attention at that time.
The.even older rule is."Don't give your customers an excuse.to check out the competition." Actually that's Mayer's First Law if Economics."
Just my gut feeling, but I believe that our PM might have had more than a word or two of influence on the EU's pivot and not recently. 😉❤️🇨🇦
Saw a story where France and Germany are in a spat over aircraft production/design and that now, Germany is considering purchasing more F-35s from the Americans. Any thoughts/info on this story?
Yes Ron... there’s ongoing tension between France and Germany over their joint next-gen fighter project (FCAS). Disagreements about design control, requirements, and industrial share have slowed things down.
Because of that uncertainty, reports came out that Germany might buy more F-35s as a hedge. But Berlin has said no additional purchases are confirmed beyond the jets already ordered.
The bigger picture: Europe wants defence independence, but capability gaps keep pulling countries back toward U.S. equipment. That tension is still unresolved.
YEAH, THE GERMANS, THE FRENCH, THE ENGLISH…. ALL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION NATIONS PUT OUT VERY COMPETITIVE PRODUCT ESPECIALLY ON THE BATTLEFIELD… CHALLENGERS, LEOPARDS, RAFAELS, MIRAGES, ETC ETC ETC ARE ALL WEAPONS PLATFORMS EQUAL TO OR BETTER THAN ANYTHING WE SELL THEM…..
We have been taught all our lives, remember history, so we don’t forget 🫡
Should we also spend 5% of our GDP bcs we didn’t learn our lesson. 🤷♂️. Or is that bcs the global Leadership sucks, and we have to stroke old Donald’s stones …
… lest we forget …