[Barry Churcher]

Credit to the post below goes to the Vancouver Artillery Assoc. News.

Barry

ACCOKEEK, Md., April 23 /PRNewswire/ — Beretta U.S.A. today announced it has been awarded a multi-year contract from the Canada Border Services Agency effective immediately. This government-to-business contract will provide the soon to be armed Canadian agency with the Beretta Model Px4 Storm semi-automatic pistol in 9mm, double action with tritium sights. The contract’s initial order is for 2,400 units, with additional options allowing orders of up to 6,400 total units. As part of the contract, Beretta USA will train the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Armourer Section to become a warranty center for the product in support of the Canada Border Services Agency. The Beretta Px4 Storm offers a number of unique features including interchangeable back straps that make it adaptable to different hand sizes, an ambidextrous manual safety lever ideally positioned on both sides of the slide for easy access by all shooters and a reversible magazine release button that can be mounted on either side and can quickly be replaced by a smaller or larger size button depending on the users preference. The interchangeable back strap and the ability to easily customize the Px4 Storm for individualized comfort and use make the pistol a versatile choice for law enforcement departments that have firearm users with a wide range of hand sizes. In addition to the product features of the Px4 Storm, this Beretta semi-automatic pistol offers unsurpassed reliability in the field. During the CBSA evaluation, the Beretta Px4 Storm dramatically exceeded reliability and adverse test conditions, including testing at -40 degrees Centigrade. According to Jeff Reh, Vice-General Manager for Beretta USA Corp, “We are honoured to have been chosen for this prestigious contract by the Canada Border Services Agency. The Canadian Government has chosen a state-of-the-art pistol to match the increasingly challenging mission of providing border security. We look forward to working with the CBSA to satisfy the needs of this important department.”

These pistols are being built in the US, and all benefit goes to Beretta, USA. CBSA officers are receiving their shiny new Berettas now. Meanwhile, the CF is using pistols that are roughly between 20 and 65(!) years old. They reached the end of their service life when soldiers serving today were little. Yet, like so much else of our equipment, we are squeezing more life out of them.

It is past time that our current service side arms are replaced. The Army’s Browning Hi-Powers date from WW2 and are notorious for magazines falling out while firing (which is a problem if you find yourself in a situation where your life depends on that sidearm), and the Navy’s and MP’s SIG-Sauer P225s (from the 1970s) are worn out to the point that the springs crack or break, rendering the weapon inoperative until replacement.

On Oct 17, 2011, The Ottawa Citizen reported that the P&A for new Army handguns had been cancelled because potential suppliers objected to its requirement to supplying proprietary details to Colt Canada. No suppliers regarded this small order as worth surrendering industrial secrets.”
Now, the above is a matter of record; it is (somewhat) known that the selection was down to the SIG-Sauer P226 or the 4th-generation Glock 17, at which point the government informed the suppliers that the design would have to be licensed to Colt Canada, to allow 10,000 pistols to be built in-country.

In this day and age, the phrase “Industrial & Regional Benefit” is tossed around a lot. Basically, the idea is to provide economic benefit to Canada for any government procurement (another example is the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy). So, the CF cannot have new handguns until they are built in Canada. Why, then, is the Canada Border Services Agency, another federal government agency, allowed to arm their officers with 6,400 Beretta PX4 Storm pistols purchased in the US? These pistols are being built in the US, and all benefit goes to Beretta USA. CBSA officers are receiving their shiny new Berettas at this time. Meanwhile, CF personnel are using pistols that are roughly between 20 and 65(!) years old. They reached the end of their service life when most serving soldiers were little. Yet, like so much else of our CF equipment, more life is being squeezed out of them. It is unfortunate that this seems to be one of those issues where a CF member must be hurt or killed before something changes. At what point does IRB become worth it?

If this government really cares about its military, it must relax some of its inflexible rules. Providing economic benefits to Canada is well and good, but the effectiveness of the equipment and receiving it in a timely manner should take priority.”