New Fighters

Canada plans to buy the the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter to replace the CF-18. Since this will be a single source purchase there are obviously serious misgivings about the choice. Canada has contributed to the development of the F-35 which may explain the decision, but that doesn't mean it's the right one.

In an an open bid, what are the competitors? This article mentions the F-18 Silent Eagle, the F-18 Super Hornet, the Eurofighter Typhoon, and the Dassault Rafale which was developed when France dropped out of the Eurofighter program. If only Canada had an aerospace industry that would allow us to develop our own fighter, but I'll refrain for make obvious references. *cough*Avro Arrow*cough*

Compared to the other options, the F-35 is a good choice, so it is likely that bidding process would picked it anyway, but we'll never know now.