When people think of fighter jets, images of heroic American pilots usually comes to mind. Crying eagles, waving flags… the whole bit. You see, the USA does indeed have a massive air-force, and the most sophisticated aircraft technology on the planet to boot – but did you know that Canada helped kick off this superiority in a massive way?
In 1953, at the height of the cold war, a Canadian company called Avro started designing a new interceptor aircraft called the CF-105 Arrow. Their plan was to create an interceptor capable of repelling the Soviet threat. The Russians had begun developing a fleet of long range bombers equipped with nuclear payloads, and well… you get the picture. It was time for Canada to get their ass in gear.
The Avro CF-105 Arrow Interceptor Aircraft
It took them five years, but by the time 1958 rolled around, Avro had succeeded in creating a highly capable interceptor. The CF-105 could achieve speeds of Mach 2, and at altitudes of over 50,000ft. Everyone considered it a technological marvel; surely it went on to fill the ranks of Canada’s air-force, right? Well, not exactly.
Our Government decided to scrap this majestic flying beast, and Avro went bankrupt. Dejected, the employees scattered, moving on to companies in the USA and abroad to develop even better technologies. This was yet another example of hilariously bad policy thwarting the progress of technology, and the topic I’ll undoubtedly rant about in many future articles.
I’m not so hot on the colours, but I actually like the look of the jet. It’s sleek, aggressive, and I’m impressed that a Canadian company was able to pull this off. It’s just unfortunate that we have such a bad track record when it comes to fighter jets. We don’t actually need them, but we sure keep trying. Maybe one day we’ll figure it out.
Further Information
If you’re looking for more information on the CF-105 Arrow and the hilariously bad policies that led to it’s demise, head over to Military Factory for a much more detailed account. They actually seem to know what they’re talking about, and you’ll find more than just the vaguely comprehensible nonsense I tend to spew forth. It’s a good read, and you’ll learn all about turbo jets, delta wing stuff, and all the communications equipment that pilots need to check the weather and listen in on shitty radio stations. Okay, maybe not the last bit, but work with me here.
Even better, you can actually see this piece of aeronautic badassery in action (or at least sitting around collecting dust) at The Canadian Air & Space Museum in Toronto, Ontario.
(Photos by Dennis Jarvis, BiblioArchives, and Ken Mist)
I suppose like all good legends, there is a lot more behind this story. First, AVRO was not a Canadian company really, it was a subsidiary of a British company. Secondly, when the Arrow was cancelled, we did not exactly loose all our good technical people to other countries (mostly to the US), because most of them were not from Canada to start with, but were brought in to work on the CF-105 project. Most importantly the project was grossly over budget and beyond what Canadian tax payers could afford in terms of finishing. Legend continues that other counties were desperate to purchase the air craft once in production, but in fact, there were no potential buyers, and no way for Canadians to recover the cost. Additionally, while a spectacular aircraft and technologically advanced, it was not “far supierior” to a handfull of other aircraft in production at the time in the USA, France, England and Russia (which was why there were no buyers waiting for the Arrow). Ultimatly though, the need for an interceptor type aircraft diminished dramatically with the development of long range ICBM’s in the 1950’s and onward, and while the aircraft itself was advanced, the need for it had become obsolete. The threat had shifted from bomber attack, to missle attack, a weapon that interceptor aircraft were powerless to stop.
As a Canadian historian, I have a great fondness for the Arrow, but it is important to remember that there was a tremendous amount at play and that scrapping the aircraft saved Canadians from an even greater disgrace…a runway full of obsolete fighters that no one wanted, that no one could use, and that every tax payer would have had to pay for for generations. While the CF-105 was a tremendous fighter interceptor, it would have become Canada’s Edsel by 1962.
Here’s to her memory though!
Thank you very much for the information. Unlike you, I’m not a historian and simply like shining a light on interesting bits of “secret history” I find while trawling the internet. I really appreciate the clarification.
One of the most amazing things about the Arrow myth is how the Liberals somehow “forgot” that they had decided to cancel the program in 1957. At that time continuing to build the Arrow would have cost taxpayers about four times as much as buying Voodoo interceptors in their place.
From the article “Liberals Planned to Cancel the Arrow” on page 2 in “The [Montreal] Gazette” 23 OCT 63, “Gen. Charles Foulkes testified yesterday that the Liberal Government of Prime Minister St. Laurent decided in 1957 it would cancel the Arrow interceptor program as soon as it was returned to power in that year’s election.[…] Gen. Foulkes confirmed the 1958 statement of Mr. Diefenbaker that the chiefs of staff had recommended cancellation of the Arrow. Gen. Foulkes said the chiefs concluded it didn’t make sense to produce an $8,000,000 interceptor in Canada when one could be obtained in the U.S. for $2,000,000. They couldn’t see where the money would come from.[…]”
See Gazette article at https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=Fr8DH2VBP9sC&dat=19631023&printsec=frontpage&hl=en
The Liberal decision was sensible and so was Diefenbaker’s Cabinet’s choice to adopt the decision. The biggest mystery surrounding the Arrow is how the Liberals later “forgot” what they had chosen to do with the program.