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Federal Fleet personnel on Asterix said the ship is capable of being at sea almost continuously year-round if needed.

The Conservative government pushed the project to convert the Asterix, a commercial vessel, into a naval supply ship in the summer of 2015. After being elected the Liberal government tried to put the project on hold after it received a letter from the Irving family complaining that its proposed ship hadn’t been given a fair examination.

Navy officers have noted the Irving proposal was examined and rejected.

Asterix was at the heart of the Crown’s case against Vice Admiral Mark Norman.

Norman, who was the second-highest ranking officer in the Canadian Forces before being suspended by Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Jon Vance, was charged with one count of breach of trust. The RCMP alleged Norman tipped off Davie Shipbuilding in the fall of 2015 that the Liberal government was considering delaying the Asterix project.

Details about the government’s decision were also leaked to journalists, and the resulting embarrassment — along with $89 million in financial penalties that would have been imposed on the government — forced the Liberals to back down on their plans.

The case against Norman collapsed May 8 after new evidence prompted the Crown to conclude there was no reasonable chance of securing a conviction. The naval officer, who entered a plea of not guilty, always maintained he had done nothing wrong.

Asterix is a rare example of a defence purchase that has been delivered on time and on budget.

The Liberal government has rejected Davie’s plan to convert a second commercial ship into a supply vessel, stating that such a capability isn’t needed.

Asterix is the only refuelling and resupply vessel that is assigned to the RCN.

The navy’s other supply ships were taken out of service years ago.