Canada To Announce Decision On F-35 Early Next Week

A decision on Canada’s F-35 purchase is expected next week, if local media reports are to be believed.

The Conservative government is expected to make a final decision as soon as next Tuesday, followed soon after by an announcement that will put an end to the debate about whether to hold a competition to buy new fighter planes or to renew the $45-billion plan to sole-source the purchase of F-35s, according to CBC News.

The decision comes after an 18-month review of the available fighter jet options, including the F-35 and file a public report on the choices.

That report is now complete and has been handed to government, but Public Works Minister Diane Finley has so far refused to make it public as promised, according to the report.

Canada's planned purchase is the 6th-largest by a country and would further safeguard the $399 billion program, according to Reuters. Its rising costs had sparked fears of a "death spiral," in which countries cut plane orders, driving up the price of remaining planes and triggering further cancellations.