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Aging ships may force Canadian Navy to borrow from allies

The engine-room fire that left the HMCS Protecteur aflame and adrift off the coast of Hawaii last February is emblematic of what critics say is a rudderless Naval Defence policy. Two aging supply ships are out of commission and critics say the Navy may be forced to borrow ships from our allies....
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The Current17:55Aging ships may force Canadian Navy to borrow from allies - Nov 27, 2014
The engine-room fire that left the HMCS Protecteur aflame and adrift off the coast of Hawaii last February is emblematic of what critics say is a rudderless Naval Defence policy. Two aging supply ships are out of commission and critics say the Navy may be forced to borrow ships from our allies.


Last February, Petty Officer Andre Aubrey got a first hand look at the fire that crippled HMCS Protecteur. At the time, the Protecteur was one of two of Canada's working supply ships. Both have since been decommissioned.

Earlier this month, Vice Admiral Mark Norman told a House of Commons committee that their replacements won't be available for several years and that the government had better start planning for how to fill the gap. Critics say this didn't need to happen because they've been sounding the alarm about the aging naval ships ever since Ottawa scrapped the procurement contracts for new vessels in 2008.

Ken Hansen served in the Royal Canadian Navy for 32 years. He now teaches political science at Dalhousie University. And he's a contract researcher who works on cost assessments on naval ship building for the Parliamentary Budget Officer.

The NDP critic for National Defence, MP Jack Harris, has suggested the Conservative policy for the Navy is: lend or lease. With his thoughts on what's happened and how to get back to smooth sailing, Jack Harris joined us from Ottawa.


We requested interviews with Defence Minister Rob Nicholson and his Parliamentary Secretary James Bezan. Neither were available this morning.


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This segment was produced by The Current's Josh Bloch and Howard Goldenthal.

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