Canada has announced that they will enter into detailed discussions and formal negotiations with Saab as the preferred supplier of Canada’s future AEW&C, enabled by Saab’s GlobalEye. At this point, Saab has not signed a contract nor received an order.
The announcement was made by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney at CANSEC, Canada’s largest defence and security trade show.
Saab has offered to build, maintain and upgrade the Canadian GlobalEyes with a team of Canadian partners. The goal is to transfer knowledge and technology to Canada that will grow the domestic defence industry. Saab also plans to invest in research and development (R&D) work in Canada, as part of the future programme.
"We welcome Canada's decision to enter into discussions with Saab as the preferred supplier of the future Canadian AEW&C capability. GlobalEye offers proven capability for the Royal Canadian Air Force, sovereign ownership for Canada and comprehensive and skilled work for Canadian industry," President and CEO of Saab, Micael Johansson, stated.
Saab will now follow the next steps in the process with the Canadian authorities.
GlobalEye would allow Canada to monitor vast areas of land, sea and sky. Based on the Global 6500 aircraft from Bombardier, GlobalEye combines Saab’s Erieye Extended Range radar with an advanced suite of sensors and a multi-domain Command and Control (C2) system.