Canada calls EADS transport a 'paper airplane'

Smacking down the yet-to-be-produced EADS CASA A400 as a possible search and rescue plane, a Canadian Department of National Defence spokesman quips, "We don’t buy paper airplanes."

EADS CASA President Francisco Fernandez has acknowledged that the A400 is still suffering from about a dozen "difficulties" in "areas that present a critical risk," but said that the company was working on them.

The DND's apparent decision not to have a competitive bidding process to replace the Lockheed C-130 has irked some military observers, including a Halifax contributor who argues that Canada should not "sacrifice competition" (a reference to the EADS CASA C-295) for "speed" (the faster Alenia C-27J).