Last March, a rudder section rotted by corrosion fell off a CF-18 during a training exercise. A subsequent investigation found two more CF-18's with serious corrosion damage. Many more aircraft with similar problems are likely to be discovered. There is nothing inherently wrong with the CF-18, a robust, dependable aircraft made by Boeing Corp. that is in wide service in Canada, the US, and in many other nations. A small squadron of Canadian CF- 18's performed well in the Kosovo War, flying topcover and strike missions.
Corrosion is a constant problem with all civil and military aircraft.
The answer to aircraft corrosion is thorough inspection and maintenance. And that's the real problem in Canada. The Canadian military has been so gutted by budget cuts it often can no longer perform even minimum basic maintenance on its aircraft, ships and ground equipment. The problem here is politics, not aircraft. The government, which is now considering spending billions on state- sponsored baby sitting to attract female votes, can't find the money to properly maintain its armed forces or equip them with modern weapons.