FWSAR – Fixed-wing search & rescue

The new fleet of Fixed-Wing Search & Rescue aircraft will be modern, effective and reliable. The Government of Canada is acquiring 16 CC-295s to take over the fixed-wing search and rescue duties undertaken by legacy fleets, CC-115 Buffalo aircraft and CC-130H Hercules aircraft.

Airbus Defence and Space is providing a search and rescue solution including a modern and technologically advanced aircraft along with maintenance and support services at four RCAF Wings across Canada until potentially 2042. The solution includes a newly constructed simulator-equipped training centre in Comox, British Columbia.

The new CC-295 Kingfisher will carry out critical, life-saving search and rescue missions across Canada’s vast and challenging territory, including the Arctic.

Using integrated sensors, crews will be able to locate persons or objects—such as downed aircraft—from more than 40 kilometres away, even in low-light conditions. This will contribute to improving the overall effectiveness of searches. It is anticipated that the on-scene search time will be reduced with the use of these enhanced sensor capabilities, and the aircraft will be more reliable and available more often than current fleets.

The aircraft will also use state-of-the-art communications systems that will allow search and rescue personnel to share real-time information with partners on the ground.

Throughout the transition to the CC-295, aircraft from existing fleets will be operated to maintain search and rescue capabilities.

CC-295 Kingfisher aircraft in the sky

Implementation

  • Project approval implementation: December 1, 2016
  • Contract award: December 1, 2016
  • First delivery in Spain: December 18, 2019
  • Initial operational capability: 2025-2026
  • Full operational capability: 2029-2030

Benefiting Canadian Industry

  • To reduce risks to both the Government of Canada and to bidders, the following industry engagement activities occurred between December 2011 and March 2015:
    • before the release of the final Request for Proposal, two industry days took place with over 200 participants each, seven multi-day one-on-one meetings with each industry team, and eight telephone/video conferences;
    • all RFP documents were released to industry for review and comment via 30 Letters of Interest and 176 formal responses were received;
    • site visits were conducted to the four existing Main Operating Bases and a tour of a Joint Rescue Coordination Centre took place;
    • a video showing a day in the life of a search and rescue technician to ensure industry fully understood requirements was produced and released.
  • The Industrial and Technological Benefits (ITB) policy was applied to the acquisition and in-service support contracts.
    • The total ITB obligation for the FWSAR acquisition is $1.9 billion. As of August 2020, $1.64B in progress, and $284.7M completed. Total ITB obligation for FWSAR in-service support is $578M, $443M in progress, and $135.6M completed.
    • Our Commitment to Canadian Industry apply to:
      • Acquisition
      • Maintenance
    • The contract for the training facility in Comox, British Columbia was awarded to the Canadian company CAE via the prime contractor Airbus Defence and Space.

Technical Information

The CC-295 is a twin-engine, medium-range, multi-purpose transport aircraft manufactured by Airbus Defence and Space.

  • Length: 24.45 metres / 80 feet, 3 inches
  • Height: 8.60 metres / 28 feet, 3 inches
  • Wing Span: 26.70 metres / 90 feet, 7 inches
  • Wing Area: 60 square metres / 646 square feet
  • Power Plant: 2 Pratt & Whitney Canada PW 127G turboprop engines
  • Engine Power (each): 1972 kW / 2645 shp
  • Maximum Takeoff Weight: 23,200 kilograms / 51,147 pounds
  • Cruise Speed: 452 kilometres per hour / 244 knots / 281 miles per hour
  • Service Ceiling: 7,620 metres / 25,000 feet
  • Range: 4,500 kilometres / 2,430 nautical miles / 2,796 miles
  • Crew Complement: 6
  • Passengers: 36 (troop transport configuration)
  • Quantity: 16
  • Location: Scheduled for:
    • 19 Wing Comox, British Columbia
    • 17 Wing Winnipeg, Manitoba
    • 8 Wing Trenton, Ontario
    • 14 Wing Greenwood, Nova Scotia
  • Manufacturer: Airbus Defence and Space
  • Estimated life expectancy: 30 years

Note: These numbers may be subject to modification based on aircraft configuration.

Project Costs

  • Initial Contract
    • The initial contract was for $2.4 billion* and covered 11 years (to 2027). These costs included:
      • First six years of acquisition, transition and set-up
      • Following five years of in-service support
  • Extended in-service support
    • Following the first 11 years, the department has an option to extend in-service support for up to 15 years (to 2042). The government may exercise these options in increments of one to three years based on contract performance.
    • In October 2020 through a contract amendment, Canada exercised the first option year of in-service support, leaving 14 years remaining.
    • In total, the initial contract and the extended in-service support contract could total $4.7 billion*.

* These amounts do not include taxes.

In an interview with ADM (Mat) Troy Crosby in 2023, he provided CDR with the following information:

Troy Crosby: I’ve been involved with the fixed-wing search and rescue project in one role or another, either here at DND or at PWGSC since 2013, before the request for a proposal was released.

I can share with you that at the time that the RFP was being developed, the team recognized that there was not an off-the-shelf fully integrated missionized solution available. So, there was going to be some level of modification work that was going to be required.

In recognition of that, we did something novel. We applied an evaluation process that was called a Capability Delivery Risk Evaluation, where during the bid evaluation we assessed the extent of modifications that would be required by the bidder, as well as their capacity and competency to actually realize those modifications.

I would have to say in hindsight, both Canada and Airbus underestimated the level of development involved in the solution that we selected and therefore the schedule risks that were involved.

We went into the process characterizing what we anticipated to be a modified off-the-shelf solution. But the reality is when you bring together the extent of the airframe modifications that were required, and probably more importantly, the integration of mission systems on the aircraft to include the work on the required software, I think it would’ve been better to have had the mindset that this was a developmental program and therefore to plan and execute it as such.

The difference is that if you’re expecting just to modify something off the shelf, you only allow so much time for iterative processes, retesting and these sorts of things. And the fact is, in a developmental program, you have to plan for that and it can become quite complex to execute. So that’s where we find ourselves today in the work required to do the qualification against the contract and the certification work to meet airworthiness requirements.

We’re making good progress. A lot of work has been completed. There’s more to go for sure.

As we speak, the aircraft are in Goose Bay undergoing contaminated runway testing, which your readers will probably understand — snow and ice crosswinds and these sorts of things.

The lesson learned for me in all of this, and we’re applying it to other acquisitions now, is that we need to acknowledge the developmental level of effort involved in what we’re asking for, which is not necessarily a bad thing when you’re trying to bring into service modern technology for the Canadian Armed Forces. But we have to avoid the ‘optimism bias’ — both Canada and industry recognize the challenges that come with that — and plan accordingly.

We will continue to refine and implement that bid evaluation strategy that we applied here, the Capability Delivery Risk Evaluation process, as part of our future procurements. And we’ll apply some of the lessons that we’ve learned from the fixed wing SAR experience.

Read our CDR-ONE-ON-ONE with Troy Crosby.

The CC-295 Kingfisher completed the rescue phase of its Operational Test and Evaluation Program, successfully proving Search and Rescue (SAR) capabilities in challenging conditions. Achieving this milestone means the aircraft is on track to reach Initial Operational Capability in early 2025 and will be ready to carry out critical, life-saving SAR missions across Canada’s vast and challenging territory.