Bad news out of Canada for everyone’s favourite plane, the F-35: the Trudeau government is in negotiations with Lockheed rival Boeing to follow Australia’s example and purchase 18 Super Hornets while it works out what exactly it is going to do to replace its air fleet. Originally the Canadians were going to buy more than 60 F-35s, until the fact that it can’t shoot, can’t dogfight and often can’t fly (it recently had another grounding due to dodgy insulation catching fire) gave Ottawa pause. It’s unsurprising given Congress has now demanded that the F-35 face off with the venerable A-10 Thunderbolt before deciding whether to shutter the A-10 program. If the F-35 can’t defeat the 40-year-old workhorse of close-in ground support, Lockheed and the shills for the F-35 in places like our own Defence Department are going to look mighty stupid indeed.