Mon, Jul 10, 2006
Tutor Trainers Are 43 Years Old
As Canada ramps up on military
spending, some officials are calling for the company's
Defense Department to throw a little money towards replacing the
aging CT-114 Tutor trainers flown by the Snowbirds precision flying
team.
The issue, like the Tutor, is not new. The London Free Press
reports the Snowbirds have been involved in no fewer than 12 major
accidents -- including five fatalities -- involving 19 aircraft
since 1972... when the two-seat trainers were already nine years
old.
However, a briefing note to Chief of Defense Staff Rick Hillier,
obtained by the Free Press, show the Canadian military is strongly
considering keeping the Tutors flying until 2020 at the earliest --
despite a lack of parts availability for the aging planes, as well
as an "increased risk of unexpected problems."
A program aimed at replacing the Tutors was launched in 2001 --
but first on the list of available options, according to an update
report from the Canadian Defense Department, is to maintain the
"status quo." Near the bottom of the list of options including
cutting the fleet back to make more parts available for flying
aircraft, as well as introducing a smaller Snowbirds team, using
four advanced CF-18 fighters.
Plans first unveiled in 2003 to bring a fleet of Hawk aircraft
onboard to replace the Tutors have also reportedly been placed on
hold.
As Aero-News reported, the
most recent accident involving a Snowbirds plane occurred last
August, when a jet flying to an airshow went down due to mechanical
problems. The pilot escaped injury.
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