The last time the government of Canada went shopping for new fighter aircraft, three decades ago, it conducted a careful evaluation of a half-dozen different aircraft from a competing plane builders. Eventually, the choice was narrowed to two candidates, both from the United States---the F-16 Fighting Falcon by General Dynamics, and the F-18 Hornet by Northrop (now Boeing).

After much deliberation, the Hornet was chosen and Canada bought 138, christening them the CF-18. A primary reason was reliability and safety. The CF-18 was to replace both the CF-101 Voodoo, a twin-engine all-weather interceptor used for patrol and protection of Canada, and the CF-104 Starfighter, a single-engine ground-attack, reconnaissance and interceptor aircraft, based in Europe with Canada's NATO squadrons.

Like the Voodoo, the Hornet had two engines while the Fighting Falcon had only one. The decision-makers 30 years ago realized that a single engine was a distinct liability for long-distance patrols across the Canadian North and along long coastlines. If the engine failed---and engines do fail---how would the pilot get back?

Experience with the single-engine CF-104 Starfighter drove the safety point home. Although the Starfighter had performed adequately under training conditions in Arizona, the weather in Northern Europe was a different story. The plane had a nasty habit of falling out of the sky and into forests and mountains.

The German Luftwaffe, which also flew the Starfighter, called it the "Witwenmacher"---which translates as "Widowmaker," as it became known among the Canadian Forces. Over the years, the Luftwaffe lost 30 percent of its F-104s in accidents. The attrition rate in the Canadian Forces was nearly 50 percent---accidents claimed no fewer than 110 of the 238 Starfighters. Thirty-eight Canadian airmen lost their lives.

The decision to opt for two engines when the time came to replace the Starfighters and Voodoos seemed like a no-brainer. Since the twin-engine CF-18 came into service in 1982, it has proved to be reliable. Although some aircraft have inevitably been lost, its safety record sets off no alarm bells. Yet today Ottawa is proposing to abandon the caution and concern for safety that characterized its CF-18 decision 30 years ago. Why?

Pressure from Washington is clearly a factor. The Americans want their allies to participate in its Joint Strike Fighter program, meaning everyone would buy and fly a version of the same aircraft. A US-made aircraft, naturally. Washington selected the single-engine F-35, built by Lockheed, the same people who built the star-crossed Starfighter.

Among the competing aircraft it passed over was Boeing's Super Hornet, the newest---and twin-engine---incarnation of Canada's CF-18 Hornet. Canada, like the other allies, had no voice in the decision to go with the F-35. There was no competition for the contract, no evaluation here of other aircraft, and no bidding on price. The price is staggering. No one seems to know for sure, but it looks at least $20 billion for 65 aircraft. (This compares to $2.4 billion for twice as many CF-18s, admittedly three decades ago.)

That $20 billion is a huge commitment to make without a debate in Parliament, without examination by a parliamentary committee---and without, in fact, any considered explanation to the Canadian public as to why the country needs this particular plane at this immense cost. Defence Minister Peter MacKay brushed off the safety issue when he was asked last summer what would happen if the F-35's single engine failed on patrol in the Far North. "It won't," he replied.

His confidence is unnerving. Here's a comment from a former Conservative cabinet minister who knows the North extremely well: "Single engine? In the Arctic? I wouldn't put my worst enemy in one!" Yet the Harper government, trying to please the Americans, is proposing to do just that. But it's not a worst enemy who will be flying the plane. It's Canadian aviators who will be put in harm's way by their own government. (X)

Cambridge resident Geoffrey Stevens, an author and former Ottawa columnist and managing editor of the Globe and Mail, teaches political science at Wilfrid Laurier University and the University of Guelph. He welcomes comments at geoffstevens@sympatico.ca.