I know everyone has a crush on the Avro Arrow...

...but let's not get carried away. It was a good airplane, but it was not going to thrust Canada into air dominance and it certainly cannot take on any modern aircraft today as some people seem to believe.

The very best argument for it is that it would maintain a domestic air defense ability as well as a competitive Canadian aerospace industry. Again: competitive, not dominant.

The Avro Arrow's main call to fame (other than being Canadian) was its flight altitude and speed. These features are great assets, because it was designed as an interceptor, not an air superiority fighter. That means it has to take off, gain altitude quickly and dash out to meet opposing bombers. I don't know how many Gs it could pull, but just judging from its size and role I expect its turning radius to be measured in nautical miles. So it was suited for its job, but would probably be mediocre as a dogfighter.

The first flight of the Arrow was in 1958. What else took off during 1958? The legendary F-4 Phantom II!

How does an F-4 compare? It actually has a higher speed and operational ceiling! This may be due to the fact that its been in service longer (i.e. still in service) and has gotten numerous upgrades, but usually these would be just newer avionics or a more powerful engine, major airframe modifications just didn't happen as far as I could see. Nonetheless, its original engines outclassed the Arrow's at about 16,000 lbf vs 12,500 lbf each and it's a smaller aircraft so the thrust-weight ratio would be better. Add to the fact that it was designed to take on a fighter role and I honestly don't think the Arrow would stand much of a chance in a head on fight.

As far as taking on modern aircraft, not a chance. Firstly, speed only gets you so far (this was demonstrated during the Falklands War). In fact, the JSF and F-22 are substantially slower than the F-15 in terms of maximum speed. Secondly, modern air warfare is entirely dependent on avionics. An F/A-18F with its souped-up APG-79 can actually fire an AMRAAM and hit a target flying behind itself.

And Super Hornets aren't even real air superiority fighters!

So there you have it. Was shutting it down a bad move? Perhaps, but I feel Diefenbaker gets way too much flak for the project cancellation. Canada should get over itself.