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The problem is that the RCN needs a much larger Navy than it has had in years.I could see us having to go down the same path as we had to go down with the AOR’s, renting them from Chile/Spain, except we ‘rent’ a friendly nations frigate(s) to perform tasks within CDN national waters that we’d normally do once we don’t have the CPF numbers.
Either we do that, or we buy some 2nd hand ships from the US/Brits or someone else and run them for a 5-10yrs period until the 15 CSC’s are available.
15 CSC aren't even really going to fill the 4 280 and 12 CPF gap - simply due to 15 isn't 16.
Yes the CSC are more capable - but when you have the same asks, and less hulls, it means that the hulls need to do more.
If you have tasks for 16X, and you have 15X your putting more miles (or nautical miles) on the hulls - and you have less time to conduct maintenance as the hull needs to be in the water more often, as you have 93% of the hulls you have missions for.
Now if you take that 93% and you throw it on top of the pile of the MCDV and AOPV.
You had a mission for 16 Combatants, and 12 MCDV's.
So 28 hulls, and you take and spread that over 21 Hulls (15 CSC and 6 AOPS) - now you are 75% of you needed hulls.
This is where the ruthless nature of the lack of spares starts to kill - as you need* each of your hulls to now conduct 33% MORE than before.
*assuming the asks are the same.
Also several folks have already commented that the operating costs for the AOPS are vastly higher than the MCDV - now if you start needing CSC's to conduct roles of the MCDV - that mission cost is going to skyrocket.
Few militaries seem to grasp that the platform requirements really don't drop when you get a more capable system - sure it can do more, but it doesn't mean you need less of them -- and since you generally get less of the more expensive system - you need to then push them harder - and they last less than you had planned - and the cycle continues to count down to zero. The CAF just gets the worse deal - as it generally only replaces things years after it should have been - so the death spiral is getting worse and worse and worse.