$9 Billion for what?

It was announced today that the Canadian Government is purchasing 65 new fighter jets, the F-35.  So far the only criticism of the purchase is that they did not tender the contract wasn't tendered in a competitive fashion and so should not go forward.  There has been no explanation of the intended use of the jets other than to say that they are needed to replace the aging F-18s that Canada currently has.  The last time that the jets were deployed was to protect the Olympics.

I can understand that we need to have some capability to defend ourselves and not rely on other nations military establishments to do it for us.  I understand that sovereignty is decided by ability to defend ourselves but what are these planes meant to defend us from?  Ice breakers for the north make sense, they allow us the ability to access the Arctic year-round.  What do planes defend us from?  Other planes?  In that case they don't provide much security.  A fleet of 65 planes is worth than useless compared to the nearly 2500 that the USA is planning on purchasing.

By the time maintenance costs are taken into account some experts expect the total cost to top $16 Billion.  Is there no better way that money could be spent?  Even keeping it in defense spending there must be better uses.  Why not actually spend it on defence rather than the obviously offensive applications of jet planes.  I don't buy 'the best defence is a good offence' mantra.  We could have a highly trained and effective defense force that could be deployed in Canada and around the world quickly but these F-35s are not going to be taking anyone anywhere.  The defense force could be used to defend against natural disasters at home, simply because there are not military conflicts for them to face here, and be deployed around the world to aid our allies in a defensive capacity.  I am not advocating that they be poorly equipped; I am advocating that they be well equipped for a specific purpose.

We have a Department of National Defence not International Offensives.  Equip our Armed Forces to effectively defend Canada and our allies around the world.