A fighter aircraft selection in March by the Canadian government has some aerospace suppliers ramping up for a long-deferred financial windfall, while others are lobbying Ottawa to protect training and depot maintenance capabilities that may otherwise disappear.The selection of the Lockheed Martin P-35A to replace a fleet of Boeing CP-18s also lets the Department of National Defense move forward with a growing list of supporting capabilities, such as similarly deferred acquisitions for tankers, training jets, uncrewed aircraft systems, maritime patrol aircraft and the modernization of the North Warning System.A contract signing for 88 P-35As for the Royal Canadian Air Force is still months away. Filomena Tassi, minister of public services and procurement, assured a Cansec exhibition audience here on June 2 that final negotiations would be complete by the end of the year. But J.R. McDonald, Lockheed's vice president for F-35 business development, told reporters during the event that the government-to-government talks could stretch to early 2023, with first aircraft deliveries potentially deferred by a year to 2026.
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