F-35-maker makes public case for the stealth fighter in skeptical Canada

OTTAWA – The manufacturer of the F-35 has quietly been trying to correct the Canadian record on its oft-maligned stealth fighter.

Over the last few days, senior company officials have held wide-ranging briefings on the troubled program, which has become a political lightning rod for the Harper government.

Lockheed Martin, the world’s largest defence contractor, is now trying to counter the many criticisms of the program, including sticker price, lifetime costs and status.

It faces the possibility the federal government could, sometime later this year, take the project to replace the air force’s CF-18s out to public tender.

An independent committee at public works, struck in the aftermath of last spring’s scathing auditor general’s report, is examining what other aircraft are in the market, what they can do, and what they cost.

While Lockheed Martin F-35 vice president Stephen O’Bryan says they’ve co-operated and support Canada, he laid out a business case for proceeding with program, which estimates say could cost taxpayers nearly $45 billion over its lifetime.