The $400 Million Question

Is Canada about to bow out as a full partner in manning NATO's European shield? Until a few months ago, any such notion was inconceivable. Yet in the letdown after Ottawa's cancellation of the all-Canadian Avro Arrow jet interceptor --which the government used as the occasion to write Canada off as a military air power (TIME, March 2)--some members of the Conservative government want to cut back Canada's contribution to NATO. Last week NATO's General Lauris Norstad spent 2 1/4 hours before Canada's Cabinet in worried entreaty for renewed support. But Tory Prime Minister John Diefenbaker gave no sign that Ottawa is willing to go on.

At issue is a $400 million question--more or less the cost of replacing the outmoded Sabre jets flown by eight Royal Canadian Air Force overseas squadrons with 200 to 300 supersonic fighters. In their time, the Canadian-built Sabres, along with four squadrons of still useful Avro CF-100s, helped Canada's air division gain recognition as NATO's finest. But interceptors are fast becoming obsolete and the Canadian division a token force.

Norstad's argument was that what NATO's arsenal now needs is ground-attack fighters. He won no commitments. Asked later about a report that the government now hoped to postpone a decision on the chance that a summit conference might agree on some kind of European disengagement. Defense Production Minister Raymond O'Hurley replied: ''Yes. that's what we had in mind."

If the government decides not to wait out that slim prospect, the R.C.A.F. is ready with three choices of aircraft, narrowed from an international list: Grumman's F11F-1F Super Tiger, Republic's F-105 Thunderchief and France's Dassault Mirage III. Whatever the choice, Ottawa would insist that Toronto's idle Avro plant be licensed to make it in Canada.

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