Yet one more...

General Walter Natynczyk from CBC

Yet another news story of note, to me anyways, again from the Globe and Mail, one of Canada's national papers, is about the Canadian military's top dog, General Walter Natynczyk lamenting the lack of steel cutting for new ships. I know the military is used to getting whatever it wants, but hey, welcome to the party General; just imagine how the Coast Guard guys feel - have felt for the last 30 years.

For those of you keeping record, the National Ship Procurement Strategy's website had previously anticipated the signing of a firm order - ready to cut steel - in late November 2011, shortly after the decision of the shipyard selection in October 2011. The first contract was expected to be officially signed for the fisheries research vessels to replace the like of the WE Ricker, to be built by the Washington Group's yards in BC. It is now June 2012, and still no firm order on the books for the fisheries vessel or the Arctic Offshore Patrol Ships for the Navy. Public Works and Government Services has removed any mention of time frames for actual steel cutting from their website.

from Ferriesbc

The "latest" fisheries research vessel replacement project is more or less fully drawn up, from my understanding. Unfortunately, the drawings keep getting "revised" on a routine basis, to accommodate the falling budgets, pretty soon there will only be enough money left for an ex-BC Ferries lifeboat to be converted to fisheries research - that is of course if Transport Canada can get their act together.

Mind you, the way the ruling Federal Conservative party is going, the significant cuts to all thing "Science" - who need that superstitious bunch anyways - they may just skip this project altogether, and save themselves the hassle of budgeting for this, in these "tight economic times".

The NSPS is looking more and more, like a traditional Canadian ship building program, yet one more time, with yet one more voice expressing concern. Read the news story here.