[*Originally appeared in Canadian Naval Review, Vol. 6, No. 4 (Winter 2011).] “Cheap for us and nasty for the Germans.” Winston Churchill, 1940. In this centenary year there is much […]
The initial rumour out of Britain that Canada and UK were discussing new frigate plans [see also here] was quickly denied by the Canadian government, but subsequent public statements by […]
I recently came across the Australian Strategic Policy Institute [ASPI] Special Report Issue 31, dated 31 May 2010 and entitled Naval gazing: The future of Australia’s naval shipbuilding and repair […]
For all of those critics of a Canadian shipbuilding effort who argued we should by off -the-shelf vessels like the San Antonio-class instead of building the JSS here, the article […]
I am pleased to see such a lively and informed discussion on Shipbuilding in Canada. As our government considers the many different paths available for stimulating the economy, I am […]
The recent comments by Denis Stairs and Eric Lerhe on my initial offering on the future requirements for a new Canadian shipbuilding initiative made me realize that we were all […]
Peter Haydon has provided strong arguments for shipbuilding to be a large part of the government’s infrastructure package. President Roosevelt’s 1932 shipbuilding initiative indeed provided jobs, stimulated the economy, and […]
Peter Haydon has seized on the need for a significant government response to the current economic crisis to make a powerful case for initiating a stabilized ‘made-in-Canada’ programme for the […]
I recently discovered your website and have been reading many past articles where the perennial problems of procurement are featured. Why is there no mention of the ORCA Training Patrol […]
The economic crisis has become a catalyst for a variety of national and local infrastructure projects. Although this makes sense, the scope could be much broader. To those of us […]
The unexpected press release announcing the termination of procurement processes for two new types of ships for the Canadian Coast Guard and Navy was no doubt a heavy blow. And […]
Dear Senator Kenny, Bravo Zulu on a plainspoken wake up call to Canadians. Jack Granatstein’s classics – “Who Killed Canadian History?” and “Who Killed the Canadian Military?” have fallen on […]
This week’s announcement that the contracts to modernize and refit the twelve Halifax-class frigates will be split unequally between two shipyards (East: Halifax Shipyard, seven ships, $549M; West: Victoria Shipyards, […]
In today’s Defence Watch by David Pugliese an unnamed Canadian naval officer laments that the lack of progress on naval construction and refitting will result in the navy being short […]
Here is a ‘brain teaser’ to wrestle with over the Holidays! A recent article in the U.S. press described three different theoretical future fleet plans for the USN. One fleet […]
In an industry known for its boom and bust cycles the forecast Canadian new building requirements over the next fifteen years should be signalling the start of another boom cycle […]
The strategy for achieving an independent foreign policy through development of naval capacity appears to be maturing almost exactly 100 years after it was first articulated. The plan was first […]
The announcement of the $3.1B frigate upgrade is solidly good news. This very welcome project does, however, contain hidden dangers. Significantly, the DND backgrounder suggests it will include: A new […]
The announcement by Prime Minister Harper that naval ship upgrades will provide new opportunities for contractors is interesting but it lacks a sense of strategic context. Announcing FELEX, which by […]
