'The only choice': Defence Department going with Boeing to replace aging Aurora fleet

The federal government is buying at least 14 Boeing surveillance planes from the United States to replace the aging CP-140 Aurora fleet, cabinet ministers announced Thursday. The deal costs more than $10.3 billion in total, including US$5.9 billion for the jets themselves, and the planes are expected to be delivered in 2026 and 2027.

The federal government is buying at least 14 Boeing surveillance planes from the United States to replace the aging CP-140 Aurora fleet, cabinet ministers announced Thursday.

The deal costs more than $10.3 billion in total, including US$5.9 billion for the jets themselves, and the planes are expected to be delivered in 2026 and 2027.

"These aircraft are not just planes. They are complex weapons systems. And the Poseidon has a proven capability with a track record of success," Defence Minister Bill Blair said at a news conference in Ottawa.

The Aurora fleet, already more than four decades old, will reach its retirement age in 2030, and Blair said replacing it before that date was imperative.

"The fact that it met all of the requirements that the Air Force defined for us really made this not only the right choice, but frankly the only choice."

In a media briefing on Thursday, officials said the fleet will give Canada new capabilities, particularly in the Arctic, to hunt submarines. The planes will also be used for search-and-rescue operations and maritime patrols, and they will have anti-ship missiles.

The officials from the Defence Department, the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Procurement Department were providing the information on the condition they not be named.