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Canada had been in ongoing negotiations with the U.S. government and its Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) over the continued use of the Challengers in U.S. airspace.

“The RCAF has confirmed with the United States Department of Defense and the FAA that we will continue to operate our aircraft in U.S. airspace under a Memorandum of Understanding,” Department of National Defence spokesman Dan Le Bouthillier said. “This interim measure will allow the RCAF to continue operating its Challenger aircraft in U.S. airspace with established processes and is a reflection of our strong relationship with our American partners.”

Photo by Postmedia files

The memorandum covers a five-year period.

“Since two of our Challenger aircraft are not ADS-B compliant, they may still be subject to suboptimal flight routings in parts of the U.S., depending on location, density of air traffic and other factors,” Le Bouthillier added.

That could mean, for instance, that the Canadian aircraft might need to be rerouted or take a different flight path if the level of air traffic in an area is high.

The RCAF operates four Challenger jets, with the two more modern aircraft already outfitted with the new equipment.

The Liberal government has been reluctant to buy new aircraft since it is expected Conservative MPs will try to score political points about planes being purchased for VIPs such as the prime minister before new fighter jets are bought for the RCAF.

When the Liberals were in opposition, they criticized the Conservative government’s use of VIP aircraft.