New Chinooks, armoured vehicles: Let's hope this story is accurate

Certainly about time a contract was finally signed for the CH-47Fs:

$10 billion for military equipment
Tories approve plans to buy armoured vehicles, helicopters

The Harper government has approved a plan to purchase new armoured vehicles for the Canadian Forces and is set to announce that it has finally reached a deal on the purchase of additional Chinook helicopters.

The government is now trying to decide how best to roll out the military projects, which total almost $10 billion, for maximum public-relations value...

The Harper government originally announced its intention to buy 16 Chinooks in the summer of 2006, but negotiations with Boeing have been slow because Canada wanted a variety of changes made to the aircraft [allocating industrial regional benefits for Canadian firms has also been a major factor in the slow pace, more here]...

The 16 Chinooks aren't expected to be delivered until after 2011, the end of Canada's combat mission in Afghanistan, according to various Conservative cabinet ministers.

In the summer of 2006, the Defence Department noted that the total cost of the purchase of the 16 Chinooks would be around $4.7 billion. That included a 20-year support package for the aircraft [emphasis added].

The armoured-vehicle purchases would include what is being called a close-combat vehicle that would be used to accompany the army's Leopard 2 tanks. The acquisitions will also include a new armoured tactical patrol vehicle and an upgrade of the existing LAV-3 fleet that has been worn down by continued use in Afghanistan. Also added to the package is the purchase of a new armoured engineering vehicle.

Defence industry officials estimate the value of the armoured-vehicle purchases total around $5 billion.

The approval by the government of the purchases now sets in motion the process for the Defence Department to officially begin the projects and receive funding from Treasury Board. The individual programs will then unfold over the next seven to 10 years.

According to a timeline of the procurements obtained by the Citizen, the bulk of the money for the close-combat vehicle and the tactical armoured patrol vehicle would be spent from 2013 to 2016. It is unclear whether the Conservative government will move more quickly than that with the procurements...

Regarding the Tactical Armored Patrol Vehicle (TAPV):

...
While discussing CF armoured vehicle priorities in mid-2008, Chief of Land Staff, LGen Andrew Leslie, mentioned an armoured patrol vehicle which would be smaller than a Coyote but better protected than a G-wagon. This is called a Tactical Armoured Patrol Vehicle. TAPV is considered a key component of FLCS [Family of Land Combat Systems] and, ultimately, will replace both the Coyote (now being upgraded) and the RG-31 APV as well as some G-Wagons. Other than being armoured and smaller than a Coyote, there are few details about TAPV. [2] DND wants a wheeled vehicle but emphasizes mobility. An improved Fennek [3] is one possibility, the recce version of the US JLTV [4] is another...




...[3] Being a low-slung vehicle, Fennek did not fare all that with mines and IEDs. The original Fennek has now been upgraded with add-on armour packages. KMW has also developed a 'next-generation' Fennek, the better protected F2 (originally known as the GP-F2T Fennek).
[4] The Joint Light Tactical Vehicles seem to have survived the recent DoD budget cuts...

More on the Fennek and JLTV.