Question Period Note: National Defence VIP flights

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Why is this Government using scarce Canadian Armed Forces resources to fly senior officials?

National Defence operates aircraft fleets that support government travel when secure and coordinated transportation is required.
These flights are planned in accordance with operational requirements to ensure safe, reliable travel for Government of Canada representatives.
Costs related to these flights are tracked and reported transparently.
Providing air transportation remains critical to support Canada’s engagement with international partners.

If pressed on availability of aircraft for the Prime Minister:

Situations where National Defence cannot support the Prime Minister’s itinerary are extremely rare.
The October 2025 trip to Egypt is the sole instance in recent times where contingencies were not possible.

If pressed on costs:

National Defence takes its responsibility as a steward of public funds seriously.
As with any flights, costs are incurred related to things like catering, airport fees, local taxes and fuel.
These expenses are recorded and reported by National Defence as a matter of routine.

In October 2025, Prime Minister Carney traveled to Egypt to attend the Middle East Peace Summit. On October 21, 2025, Order Paper Question (OPQ) 505 was brought forward concerning expenditures related to this trip.
National Defence’s response indicates that there were no available aircraft with available crew that could accommodate this travel. It also notes that if the Challenger had been available, estimated fuel costs for the trip would be $198,800.
On December 9, 2025, CBC published an article which compared the reported costs of chartered flights with the estimated cost in the OPQ response, among other details.

On August 25-27, 2025, Prime Minister Carney made his first official visits to Poland, Germany, and Latvia. This trip focused on strengthening relationships with European allies and advancing co-operation in key areas including trade, energy, critical minerals, and collective defence.
On September 17, 2025, OPQ 331 concerning expenditures related to the Prime Minister's trip as well as for the accompanying delegation, was brought forward.
The response, tabled November 3, 2025, outlines expenses incurred during the trip, including:
- Accommodation (crew): $6,199.23
- Food charges to host unit (groceries for in-flight preparation-crew): $682.71
- In-flight catering (delegation and crew):
  - Gate Gourmet (Ottawa): $9,692.64
  - Gate Gourmet (Berlin): $12,771.32
  - Riga Catering (Latvia): $18,427.11 (partial and subject to change)
- Aircraft Fuel (estimated): $326,284.80
- Temporary Duty travel claims (CAF personnel): $22,082.68
  
  These costs were tracked and reported by National Defence. Some invoice details remain pending.

The Royal Canadian Air Force providing air transportation for Government of Canada representatives has secondary benefits and improves readiness as, for example, pilots can obtain much needed flying hours. This improves overall operational effectiveness.

Responsible Principals: Royal Canadian Air Force

The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) aircraft fulfill critical roles for the Department of National Defence (DND), the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), and the Government of Canada, including:
- Rapidly deployable medical and military transport to/from theatres of operation; and
- Secure and reliable transport for Government officials.

DND provides secure VIP transport at the request of the Government.
Passenger lists and destinations for trips are requested by the requesting agency/VIP office.
As the owners of aircraft assets, DND organizes the air travel logistics for reaching the requested destination.
Additional destinations may be included for aircrew route training.
The Prime Minister is required to travel on government aircraft for both official and personal travel, in accordance with long-standing government policy and for security reasons.

The RCAF Squadron and/or flight steward will coordinate with the requesting VIP office.
Once the final menu has been approved, the Squadron then places the order with the appropriate caterers.
RCAF flight stewards ensure that all catering complies with Canadian food safety standards, verifying that food brought onboard is safe for consumption.

The cost of food, non-alcoholic beverages, and associated fees, including catering handling and delivery, storage, cleaning and disposal of international waste, airport taxes, administrative fees, security charges, and local taxes.
Catering costs are driven by available catering options at airports globally

Fuel consumption is estimated based on flight hours and aircraft burn rate (e.g. 1,230 litres/hour for the CC144 Challenger aircraft).
Fuel costs are calculated using the average aviation fuel price (e.g., $1.765/L).