Public safety minister calls grounded RCMP Black Hawk controversy a 'miscommunication'

The contract is being investigated by Public Services and Procurement Canada, which issued a “stop-work” order and “requested copies of all required permits, licenses, regulatory approvals and certificates” from the operator, Ottawa-based Helicopter Transport Services, according to the RCMP.

Mandatory payments the RCMP was on the hook for despite the helicopter being grounded are now “under further review,” the Mounties said.

The Black Hawk, which is chartered by the RCMP until December, has been grounded since a Transport Canada inspection on June 10 and no money has been sent to the contractor since then.

“I think there’s obviously some miscommunication between the Transport Canada authorities and the contractor, and my understanding is that matter is being resolved,” Anandasangaree said without elaborating.

It’s the latest controversy that stems from the Canadian government’s decision last year to quickly charter Black Hawk choppers to patrol the border, as part of a $1.3-billion plan to stave off tariffs threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump, who at the time demanded Canada step up its crackdowns on drug trafficking and irregular migration.

While asserting that only 0.1 per cent of U.S. fentanyl seizures could be attributed to the northern border, Canadian officials shared videos of the Black Hawks to American counterparts as evidence they were stepping up border security.

The RCMP has spent at least $43 million repeatedly renewing short-term charters of three Black Hawks, although Trump has stopped publicly citing fentanyl and border security as justification for his global tariff agenda.

Some critics have questioned the value of the helicopters, which are at the centre of domestic industry tensions because foreign ex-military aircraft can be relatively cheap and highly sought out but operate in a complex regulatory grey zone where they require special exemptions to operate in Canada.

Ottawa paused the exemptions program in 2024 pending a long-term solution. However, Transport Canada allowed Helicopter Transport Services to import the now-grounded RCMP Black Hawk earlier this year under the assumption it would fly only for training or special events.

The RCMP then replaced an existing supplier and awarded the company a contract worth up to $7.5 million. Transport Canada later raised concerns that the helicopter was not eligible to fly in Canada, and it was subsequently grounded.

The Mounties have said it was not their responsibility to ensure the helicopter could do border patrol work in Canada.

Public Transport Canada documents, including a 2024 risk assessment and a 2025 consultation paper, show department officials recommended a long-term regulatory solution that would see a proper certification process created to allow for foreign ex-military aircraft like the Black Hawks to operate in Canada.

But despite the intense industry pressure, officials did not think at the time that the new regulatory process would be fully in place until 2029, the documents suggested.

Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon’s office has deferred comment to the department, which would not comment on that timeline.

“Transport Canada is finalizing its work on the broader approach to the use of ex-military aircraft in commercial operations in Canada, and will inform relevant stakeholders about the next steps once this work is complete,” spokesperson Hicham Ayoun said in a statement.

Long-term use of the Black Hawks will be reassessed as other options and technology like drones becomes available to the RCMP, Anandasangaree told the Star.

But criticism of the helicopter contracts has been “somewhat misguided,” said the minister, who called them an “off-the-shelf fix.”

“Ultimately, in order for us to ensure the safety and security of our border, we needed these resources and we needed to deploy it on a very short timeline,” he said. “If you look at our procurement processes, for us to go through ordering and buying new helicopters, procuring them, training the pilots and personnel required, that will take a much longer time.”

Critics, meanwhile, have demanded answers.

“The Carney government must provide a full accounting of how this contract was awarded, who approved it, what due diligence was undertaken, and what steps will be taken to protect public funds going forward,” NDP public safety critic Jenny Kwan said in a statement to the Star this summer.