The Minister of Defense, Nuno Melo, addressed on Friday the procurement of Canadair aircraft to combat wildfires, which according to the schedule, will arrive in Portugal in four years.
Speaking to journalists in Almada, Setúbal District, Nuno Melo emphasized that the decision to acquire the Canadair bombers was made by a previous government, during the administration of Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho and CDS President Paulo Portas.
“At the time, a notice for two Canadairs was issued, which were expected to be in Portugal in 2017, with the Air Force engaged in wildfire combat by 2018. The decision of the subsequent government [led by António Costa] was to forgo the acquisition of these Canadairs,” he stated, referencing the tragic fires that transformed Portugal and “changed the paradigm”: “Until the events of 2017 occurred, and it was under this government [the AD government] that funding was reprogrammed to proceed with the acquisition, finally placing them in the Armed Forces for service.”
“What was possible to deliver in 2017 will now only be delivered in 2029 and 2030,” he remarked.
Addressing the topic, which has been under discussion, in response to comments from José Luís Carneiro, Secretary-General of the Socialist Party (PS), who accused Nuno Melo of making “baseless claims” and misrepresenting the truth, the minister countered: “The difference is that if the project had not been blocked in 2015 by that Government, we would have had those aircraft in combat since 2018.”
The Defense Minister stressed that the decision resulted in “an 11-year delay in one case and a 12-year delay in another.”
“What was possible to deliver in 2017 will only be delivered now in 2029 and 2030 […],” he said, noting the involvement of other countries and business-related issues.
Melo further highlighted that it was only in 2017 that a “paradigm shift” occurred, where the socialist government ‘changed’ its stance: “But this is afterward. Concerning the Canadairs, the desire and initiative for this acquisition came in 2014 and 2015 with another government. These are the facts, the rest is conversation.”
The Defense Minister also emphasized the government’s clear aim to equip the Armed Forces with the necessary resources to assist in crises, as well as in other activities such as organ transplants or rescues.
In addition to the two Canadairs, with the first delivery slated for 2029 and the second the following year, Nuno Melo discussed the acquisition of two fire-fighting kits to equip two C-130 aircraft, announced in early August.
“[The C-130 aircraft] will leave OGMA fully modernized and will fly until 2040,” he indicated.
