Disqualified

If operating costs to run your F-16's is getting you down, you are disqualified as a potential F-35 customer. There is just no way you can afford it.

New Fed Budget: Canada seeks "affordable" CF-18 replacement

The new Canadian federal budget has been released.

This article led me there.

I expected to find more mentions about Defence and the CF-18 replacement than what the reporter found. But I did not.

It says in the budget, that Canada seeks an "affordable" CF-18 replacement.

Updating Defence Capital Funding (page 223)

The Government of Canada has made significant progress towards the implementation of the Canada First Defence Strategy, which outlines a comprehensive, long-term plan to provide the Canadian Forces with the people, equipment and support they need to carry out their core missions in Canada and elsewhere in North America and abroad.

The Government will continue to replace key equipment, including purchasing new ships built in Canada through the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy, as well as by acquiring an affordable replacement for Canada’s aging CF-18 fleet to better equip Canada’s men and women in uniform. In order to ensure that funding for major capital equipment procurements is available when it is needed, the Government is adjusting the National Defence funding profileto move $3.54 billion over seven years into the future period in which purchases will be made.

If the DND was confused before, they have no reason to be now. What ever replaces the CF-18 has to be affordable.

Sometime before 2020 would be nice.