Boeing, Partners Pledge $46Bln for Fighter Jet Program in Canada

TORONTO (Sputnik) - US aerospace giant Boeing and partners are committing $46.3 billion in funding for their fighter jet program proposal in Canada, the company said in a statement.

The announcement comes as Boeing, a Lockheed Martin-led consortium and SAAB AB, are vying to secure a Canadian government contract to supply the country its next-generation fighter jet fleet.

"Through five new agreements, Boeing and its Canadian aerospace partners are preparing to deliver C$61 billion [USD $46.3 billion] and nearly 250,000 jobs to the Canadian economy," the statement said on Tuesday.

The effort to replace Canada’s ageing fighter jet fleet has dragged on for decades with successive governments failing to honour the Royal Canadian Air Forces’ request for new aircraft.

Canada became one of a host of countries to enter negotiations on the purchase of F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter-bomber from Lockheed Martin. Ultimately, the F-35 program incurred major setbacks, including ballooning costs and delayed delivery, which became a lightning rod for controversy in Canada.

The F-35 contract with Lockheed Martin was scrapped in 2016, with Canada having to pay exuberant cancellation fees and a number of Canadian suppliers to the development of the F-35 were excluded from the project.

The initial evaluation of the proposal is expected to be completed by 2021, with the contract likely to be awarded in 2022. According to reports, the expected cost of the purchase is between $11.2 billion and $14.2 billion.

Delivery of the first aircraft is expected as early as 2025.