Image: A Canadian Combat Support team from 5 Wing Goose Bay, Canada, prepares their CH-146 Griffon helicopter to be dispatched in case of an emergency during the morning launch while participating in Vigilant Shield 16, Oct. 20, 2015.
U.S. Air National Guard photo by Chief Master Sgt. Chris Drudge.
MIRABEL, QC, Jan. 17, 2024 — The Government of Canada signs a Service Life Extension to its Bell CH-146 Griffon helicopter fleet. This contract with Bell Textron Canada Ltd. will extend the service life and maintain the existing capabilities of CH-146 Griffon helicopters to support the Canadian Armed Forces and keep Canadian citizens safe.
Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, announcedm on January 17, that the Government of Canada has awarded a $2.28-billion contract to Bell Textron Canada Limited (BTCL) to provide in-service support for the Royal Canadian Air Force’s active fleet of CH-146 Griffon helicopters.
The helicopters fulfill domestic and international missions, including tactical transport, emergency response, and search and rescue (SAR). This in-service support contract will sustain the fleet until at least the mid-2030s.
Under this contract, which will begin in April 2024, BTCL will provide program management, engineering, technical and design change services, component repair and overhaul, procurement of spares and heavy maintenance services. The in-service support work will be done in Canada, namely in British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador, which will create or maintain 1,130 jobs across the country.
Through the Industrial and Technological Benefits Policy, BTCL has committed to providing business activities equal to the contract value that will ensure opportunities for the broader Canadian supply chain, including small and medium-sized businesses.
BTCL’s economic commitments to Canada have the potential to contribute at least $125 million annually to Canada’s gross domestic product over the life of the contract.
Bell Textron Canada Ltd. (BTCL)
BTCL is the original manufacturer of the CH-146 Griffon helicopter, the Bell 412 platform version developed to the Canadian Armed Forces, and has exclusive ownership of all intellectual property rights pertaining to the fleet. The company is therefore the only organization capable of providing the required in-service support and OEM.
As of 2024, 82 CH-146 Griffon helicopters are in active service, operating out of 11 locations across Canada.
On January 16, 2023, Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) released a Request for Proposal to BTCL, and a technical and financial proposal was submitted to PSPC by Bell Textron Canada Ltd. on April 28, 2023.
In May 2022, PSPC awarded a separate contract worth approximately $800 million to BTCL in support of the Griffon Limited Life Extension project, to perform the modifications required on the fleet of CH-146 Griffon helicopters to extend their life until at least the mid-2030s.
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