Three pillars strategy
The strategy has three pillars:
large vessel construction; small
vessel construction (ships under
1,000 tons); and vessel repair,
refit and maintenance.
The naval element of the programme
is covered by the large vessel
package, which is itself split into
two threads: the combat package,
for which Irving Shipbuilding has
been selected as prime, includes
the RCN’s Arctic Offshore Patrol
Ships (AOPS) and the Canadian
Surface Combatant (CSC) vessels,
the latter to replace the navy’s
current fleet of destroyers and
frigates; while the non-combat
package, for which Seaspan’s
Vancouver Shipyards is prime,
Rebuilding Canada’s
includes the navy’s Joint Support
Ships (JSS) programme and the
Canadian Coast Guard’s Offshore
Fisheries Science Vessel, the
Offshore Oceanographic Science
Vessel, and the Polar Icebreaker.
From the naval perspective, the
planned 15-ship CSC programme
– around which is wrapped
a budget of C$26.2 billion –
represents by far the largest prize.
Designed to replace three
Iroquois class air defence
destroyers and 12 Halifax class
frigates, the CSC will be capable
of meeting multiple threats in
open ocean and complex coastal
environments, ensure that
Canada can continue to monitor
and defend its waters, and also
deploy in support of international
operations
SA Artillery