Originally Posted by
Gman.45
Of course they do. During 9/11, there was a plane coming through our Northern airspace (one of the Asian carriers IIRC), and the pilot fucked up his transponder settings plus there were comm issues, so NORAD/etc decided it was a potential hostile suicide plane. Well, the RCAF wasn't able to do the intercept, and the USAF had to send up F16s and tanker assets to do so, and they did. So, yes, the USA obviously has both the capability, and plans (they have plans for many contingencies), for coming into Canadian airspace to deal with potential threats. Still, we're part of NORAD, and to give up our say in what happens during intercepts in our airspace, is exactly what you're suggesting Buster, as your drone idea is decades away from being feasible. Your points might be valid, but in a war time setting, or even just footing, they'll go right out the window, and everyone will be screeching about why we weren't better prepared and able to have our own defenses. You can count on that, it's a historical certainty.
Your position should surprise me considering your family history on this subject, but it doesn't, as like I said, your points have validity should the shaky peace between CHina, Russia, and the USA/NATO continue. If it doesn't, we'll need the new fighters. We can't count on USAF/USN/USMC support, as they may have their own problems to deal with, and/or their bases, runways, and aircraft caught on the ground might be smoking holes in that ground. Then what.
Also, just giving up our fighter capability essentially rolls back the defensive lines Russia would have to deal with back hundreds of kms, if not thousands. Giving Russia free bonuses these days isn't a real great idea, based on their recent behavior in the Ukraine, Crimea, Lith/Lat/Estonia, and so on. You should know how short ranged modern fighters are, and counting on USA fighter assets to be able to stretch up here to defend our airspace from their bases down in the USA.
edit - however downvoted Jutes = giant homo.