"In spite of their small size and heavy commitment to social welfare programs Scandinavian countries are already in the process of replacing their 1980s era fighter fleets."

As the Trudeau Liberals continue to dither and drag their feet on buying a new fighter jet, Canadians may indeed end up being lulled into a new normal of short-term, half-measures and improvisation.

But before we become too comfortable, we need to be ready to brace for a future of shame and shunning as our antiquated 1980s-era jets, which may have to remain operational until 2032, attempt to fly with the more modern air forces of our allies.

The allies in question are not the United States, nor Great Britain and France. Instead the true test of political pride will be when we realize just how much smaller NATO and other allied countries have outdone us when it comes to updating their fighter fleets.

From Austria to Australia, Netherlands to Kuwait, smaller nations are in the process of taking on newer, more advanced fighters. With combined operations being the new norm, these fleets of modern fighter aircraft will inevitably make our once proud Royal Canadian Air Force the modern aerial combat version of the sword wielding mounted cavalry in mechanized warfare.

Canadians had good reason to halt and reassess the planned purchase of 65 F-35 Lightning in 2012. The Harper Conservatives were clearly trying to deceive Canadians as to the full cost of the program. But at the same time Canadians need to take note that smaller NATO allies are currently moving ahead with their own acquisitions of recently developed fighter aircraft — whether it be the F-35 Lightning, the Eurofighter Typhoon Tranche 3A, or the Swedish JAS 39 Gripen NG. And many are completing their acquisitions at a speed and resolve that would turn the hopelessly dawdling Canadian military procurement process on its head.

In spite of their small size and heavy commitment to social welfare programs Scandinavian countries are already in the process of replacing their 1980s era fighter fleets. Denmark and Norway are already phasing out their F-16s with new orders of 27 and 55 F-35 Lightning respectively coming into operation.

Also leading Canada on the procurement front is the Netherlands, which is already taking delivery of 37 F-35s. Belgium is close to confirming its purchase of 34 F-35. Tiny, neutral Austria already has 15 relatively new Eurofighter typhoons in its inventory acquired in 2003 of which it plans to replace by 2020. Italy will be acquiring both the F-35 Lightning and Eurofighter Typhoon Tranche 3A with 90 and 21 respectively of these new aircraft that are now coming online.

Even Australia has decided to purchase 72 F-35s, which is seven more than Harper Conservatives originally planned and failed to buy. Meanwhile they are selling their older F-18 fighter jets to us Canadians giving us a chance to save some face in the years to come.

Continuing its policy of armed neutrality Sweden, the ideological champion of social democrats around the world, has already started to acquire 60 the latest version of its own SAAB JAS 39 Gripen NG which will retire some of the “old” Gripens acquired in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Known for its versatility, the newest Gripen is also being acquired by Czech Republic and Hungary, both members of NATO, with each taking on 14.

Outside of NATO and Europe, Brazil, South Africa, and Thailand have each confirmed their intention to acquire the newest Swedish Gripen. A possible addition to the list of confirmed purchasers of the Gripen is the small southern African nation of Botswana which is looking into purchasing up to eight Gripens to replace the secondhand 1970s-era Northrop F-5s which it purchased from, you guessed it, Canada.

Many should no doubt remember Canada’s involvement in the first Persian Gulf War in 1990-91 when the Royal Canadian Air Force deployed its F-18 fighters to Qatar as part of the international operation to push the Iraqi military out of Kuwait. Twenty-seven years later, the airforces of the region are more than on a par with the RCAF. The Kuwaiti military is in the process of acquiring 28 of the latest Eurofighter Typhoons Tranche 3A with Qatar taking on an additional 24 of the aircraft.

No doubt these tiny Arab nations, together with the modernizing airforces of Australia, Denmark, Netherlands, Hungary, Czech Republic, Norway, Thailand and possibly Botswana might one day fill the gap that Canada leaves behind in the wake of our stagnant military’s irrelevance.

Certainly this new reality may be perfectly fine if we truly think that we no longer stand to benefit as a nation by being able to do our share and project our air defence capability at a comparable and compatible level to even the much smaller and less populous nations of Europe, Asia or Africa. Yet if that is the case Canada shouldn’t delude itself into thinking that it stands to play anything other than the most token role in future military conflicts.

To demand anything more on our part would be an insult to the soon to be more technologically-advanced, war-ready airforces of Norway, Denmark, Netherlands, Kuwait, and Australia.