Defence minister announces new fleet of warships

It's the first of many welds onto one of Canada's newest warships. Defense Minister Bill Blair announcing the construction of 15 new Canadian surface combatants, expected to cost nearly 60 billion. They'll be built at the Irving Shipyard in Halifax. This fleet will defend Canada, it will protect our national interest, and it will be there to support our allies. Our new Canadian service combatants will be able to meet threats in the open ocean and around our coast. Got to give value to Canada. Canada expects good value. We're spending the taxpayers dollars and we have to be responsible and we are going to be responsible. They're known as river class destroyers. The first three will be named after the Fraser, St. Laurent and Mackenzie rivers. It's a similar vessel used by other NATO forces globally. So the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navies are building these ships as well. For them, they're anti submarine warfare escorts. For us they're a command and control platform, they're an air warfare destroyer, they're a strike platform. They have to do a host of functions. Federal government is feeling the pressure to build as some of its fleet continues to age out. The current Halifax fleet was commissioned in the mid 90s and it could take decades for the new ships to make it to Canadian waters. But we know that the life cycle of that Halifax fleet is beginning to reach its end and becoming increasingly expensive to maintain. What the Admiral has clearly articulated to Irving is that we need the 1st 9 by 2040. Construction is set to begin next year, but the final ship rolling out near 2050. Zac Power. Global News, Halifax.