Holy no Cyclones! But we're world class at...

This is simply outrageous. I hope the delay is Sikorsky's fault--not the result our our messing with specs--and that they pay penalties through the nose. But maybe the Liberals chose a lemon; we were the launch customer for this naval version of a civilian design and so far no-one else has bought it.

The military's chief of defence staff says he's frustrated by reports suggesting delivery of the new helicopters that will replace Canada's aging fleet of Sea Kings will likely be delayed.

Delivery of the CH-148 Cyclones could be delayed by 30 months [emphasis added], and Ottawa is reportedly considering stiff penalties against Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.

Gen. Rick Hillier says any delay issues are handled by the federal Public Works Department and the contractor, but he says the military is prepared to ensure the new aircraft are in the air as soon as possible.

He says the longer Canada's aging fleet of Sea Kings say in service, the more money they will cost to maintain and operate.

Hillier insists the Sea Kings, which have been involved in several crashes in recent years, are safe.

He says Canada needs to shed its reputation of being ``world-class at maintaining old equipment.''

The Cyclones were scheduled for delivery later this year, and the delay means the breakdown-prone Sea King fleet will have to be maintained until the new helicopters arrive.

Ottawa signed the contract in November 2004 to replace the 40-year-old Sea Kings. The deal required Connecticut-based Sikorsky to build 28 helicopters and begin delivering one per month starting in November 2008.

A spokesman for Sikorsky’s U.S. office referred calls to the company’s Canadian subsidiary. Calls to Sikorsky Canada on Wednesday night were not immediately returned.

However, Sikorsky will be penalized thousands of dollars each day the Cyclones are delayed, the source said.

The Defence Department referred all calls Wednesday night about the delay to Public Works.

"We are assessing the implications of what a delay on the delivery of the maritime helicopters will have on the operational requirements of DND and PWGSC is considering all possible options with respect to Sikorsky’s default on the timely delivery of the Maritime Helicopters," wrote Jacques Gagnon, Fortier’s communications director, in an e-mail to The Canadian Press.

The Defence Department first set out to replace the Sea Kings in the 1980s, when former prime minister Brian Mulroney’s Conservative government decided in 1992 to buy 50 EH-101 helicopters in a $5.8-billion deal.

But Jean Chretien’s Liberals tore up the deal when they came to power, paying $500 million in penalties for backing out of the contract.

Retired air force colonel Lee Myrhaugen, a former deputy commander of the military’s maritime air group and a veteran Sea King pilot, said the military made every effort to extend the Sea Kings’ life cycle and the delay could put further strain on the aging choppers.

"If it’s going to be extended some 30-odd months, that’s just going to stretch that rubber band that much further," Myrhaugen said.

"The bottom line is, you can only stretch that rubber band so far. The calculations for the delivery date of the Cyclone were based on the fact that they had extended the life of the Sea King to its maximum."

By the way, the story says Sikorsky was to "begin delivering one per month starting in November 2008." Not so. Our ace reporters (including one from CanWest News) are not keeping up with specialized sources: "The first helicopter...will be delivered in early 2009." Meanwhile the National Post's staff gives us the headline of the day:

Arrival of new helicopters for army delayed

Good freaking grief.

Here's an interesting comment at Milnet.ca.

CDS Gen. Hillier also said (I saw it on CBC Newsworld) that he was frustrated by the delay in getting the Herc replacement (and some other things); what the heck is going on with the C-130J contract? It's almost a month since it looked like a done deal.

Update: Note Fred's comment.

Upperdate: Apparently CP writers don't even consult their own archives; this is from a CP story, Jan. 23, 2007 (h/t to Jack MacLeod):

Replacement helicopters for Canada's geriatric fleet of Sea Kings will be delivered at least 5 1/2 weeks late from Sikorsky International because of a strike at the company's factory in the United States.

However, the federal government says the delay is reasonable, and it is forgoing the late penalty provisions in the contract, which allowed it to charge up to $100,000 a day in penalties to a maximum of $36 million. The $1.85-billion deal announced with fanfare by the federal Liberals in 2004 required delivery of the first of 28 maritime helicopters by Nov. 30, 2008.

That has been changed to Jan. 9, 2009...

One wonders how great a factor the strike has been in the much longer delay we now face.

Uppestdate: The fly-by-wire system in the military version of the aircraft may be a major problem.