Boeing

Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan used a major speech Wednesday to the defence industry to blast American firm Boeing for picking a trade spat with Bombardier.

Boeing says its trade complaint against Bombardier is designed to prevent the Montreal-based rival from using subsidies to produce a larger version of the CSeries plane

P.M. Justin Trudeau came out swinging Friday, May 19, 2017 against the U.S. government over its investigation into a trade dispute between U.S. aerospace giant Boeing and Canadian rival Bombardier.

The federal government hinted that Boeing should not take future military contracts with Canada for granted, a veiled threat that coincided with a spat between Boeing and Bombardier.

The Liberal government has taken the next step towards buying 18 Super Hornet fighter jets on an interim basis, a purchase it hopes to make official by year's end.

Canada has so far forked over more than $311 million to develop the F-35 — without any guarantee it will actually buy the multibillion-dollar stealth fighter.

The move comes after reports last month that the Liberals were considering buying Boeing Super Hornet fighter jets without a competition.

The possibility of being part of that process is murky, with the Liberal government having promised during last year’s election campaign that instead of buying the F-35's, it would have open bidding.

The report found that choosing one company to provide equipment should be a "subordinate option" to a competitive process so taxpayers receive value for money.