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Politics are colliding with the Air Force’s wishes as Industry Minister Mélanie Joly (Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Que.) has indicated interest in a Gripen purchase, and the domestic economic benefits that will accompany it, while the F-35 is widely believed to be the air force’s preferred choice.

“The instability of the Americans is locked in for the foreseeable future. It may or may not go away with [U.S. President Donald] Trump. But we need to make a decision now,” said former Liberal MP John McKay, who served as the chair of the House Defence Committee in the last Parliament and co-led the Canadian section of the Canada-U.S. Permanent Joint Board on Defence, which serves as the main strategic advisory body for bilateral defence co-operation.

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McKay said that Trump isn’t a reliable defence partner. “Canadians should take the measure of the man,” he said.

He said that Canada can assert its own industrial and military sovereignty through having the ability to build an airplane that is not dependent upon the whims of an American president or anyone else.

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McKay said that he would advise Prime Minister Mark Carney (Nepean, Ont.) to proceed with the Swedish proposal as a new partner.

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McKay said that picking the Gripen could lead to some sort of American trade action given Trump’s penchant for retaliatory threats.

“We are in a new environment, and we can no longer depend on the United States for a rules-based trading environment,” he said.

He called the Gripen offer a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to develop an aerospace industry in Canada.

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“It’s [the Gripen purchase] a huge opportunity that overwhelms whatever the military considerations are,” he said, remarking that those who consider the F-35 superior to Gripen “may well be right,” but added that Canada can choose something that is “almost best in class” over the best-in-class jet.

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