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“While we appreciate the CJIG’s concerns,” she said, “the government of Canada makes decisions based on what is best for Canada and our Canadian Armed Forces.”

The back-and-forth over potential jobs losses represents the latest front in the battle for a new fighter jet after Postmedia reported the Liberals are looking to buy Super Hornets without a competition.

In a sharply worded statement, CJIG noted the federal government has invested $100 million to help Canadian companies successfully compete for more than $700 million in contracts associated with the F-35. But they said winning more work is contingent on buying the plane.

The government says it needs to buy a new plane quickly, and while the Liberals say no decision has been made, it is believed they will purchase a small number of Super Hornets on an “interim” basis. That would allow the government to avoid a competition thanks to a change to federal procurement laws introduced by the previous Conservative government.

The industrial group predicted that if such a purchase goes through, the whole CF-18 fighter fleet will be eventually replaced by the same aircraft as it would almost certainly be too expensive for the Canadian military to operate more than one type of plane.

It noted the U.S. and other countries, including Denmark, are planning to buy more than 2,000 F-35s. The Danish Parliament voted Thursday to buy 27 of the stealth fighter. If Canada doesn’t purchase the plane, the industrial group said, it would mean missing out on a huge global supply chain for the next 40 years.