What, in your opinion, is the importance of the relationship between the Canadian and Israeli Air Force?
"There's a lot of resemblance between the two forces. We have about the same number of bases, a similar organizational structure, and our missions are very similar, such as patrols, aerial observation, gathering intelligence, and others. I learned a lot from the Israelis about these topics. During my visit to Tel Nof IAF base, I was very impressed. Canada is now entering the industry of UAVs and we want to learn from the IAF since they have used them already for many years and they know how to integrate it in use on the battle field together with regular planes".
Canada and Israel decided recently to purchase the F-35. What in your opinion are the advantages of the plane?
"This plane is a large step forward technologically, and in general in the world of aviation. It integrates its abilities to capture and transmit a lot of information that it receives from different sensors. It allows a single pilot to do a lot more than what he would be able to do from an older plane. This is a big change on the battlefield. The F-35 will replace our entire combat fleet. While our current fleet is very good, the Canadian Air Force is advancing to the next level of technology. We will acquire 65 new planes by the year 2017".
The Canadian Air Force uses the Israeli made Heron 1 type UAVs on the battlefield in Afghanistan. Are you impressed by them?
"We started to use the Heron UAVs in January 2009 and it is a very good platform for us. We used them for more than 7,000 hours of flight over the past year in one way or another. I even think that we broke records for total time in the air and consecutive hours in flight. We get great results from the UAVs and they allow us to collect intelligence, to organize reconnaissance, and to cover a large area, especially in the area of Kandahar, Afghanistan".
What are the main challenges of the Canadian Air Force today and what are you planning for the future?
"Last year was very busy for us. We conducted many operations in Afghanistan together with the coalition forces. In addition, there were many large events in Canada, such as the Winter Olympics and the G-20 Summit that required a deployment of the air force throughout the entire country in order to meet all the security needs and terror threats. We also participated in the international aid efforts in Haiti.
In the future, looking past Afghanistan, we'll be examining and reviewing how to tailor the Canadian Air Force to meet the needs of the coming decade. We are testing the organization of the air force, reviewing our resources and how we compensate our human resources. We do all of this to ensure that we are always in the right formation.
In terms of aircraft purchased, besides the F-35, we are purchasing new Hercules J planes that will replaces in the next two years all of our old Hercules aircraft. In addition, we are purchasing a heavy Chinook military transport helicopter. All of this, of course, while continuing our normal operations next year".