News briefs: Ottawa company building advanced drones for dangerous missions

Local

Ottawa Citizen: An Ottawa company is looking to build drones to fly with F-35s. Ottawa company Dominion Dynamics started investing $50 million to develop advanced drones that can fly alongside fighter jets like the F-35 Lightning II.

These drones, called Autonomous Collaborative Platforms, are meant to help with dangerous missions, surveillance and electronic warfare which reduces risks for pilots.

The company’s founder Eliot Pence says Canada needs to start pushing more towards sixth generation air technology instead of debating which fighter jets to buy.

The drones are being designed to handle a lot of Canada’s unique challenges, especially operating in the freezing cold Arctic and covering long distances.

National

CBC: Nunavut MP Lori Idlout left the New Democratic Party and joined the Liberal Party of Canada, which has brought Prime Minister Mark Carney closer to having a majority government.

Carney welcomed her to the Liberal Party and said they plan to work together on issues affecting Nunavut and overall northern Canada.

Idlout said her decision came after thinking about several factors, including some concerns about Canada’s sovereignty and the well-being of people in the north.

With her defection, the Liberals have now reached 170 seats, just two seats short of a majority government. Upcoming byelections could potentially give them enough seats to reach a majority.

International

CBC: Air Transat charging more for flights to Europe as jet fuel prices weigh on airlines

Flights and airline ticket prices have increased because the cost of jet fuel has gone up during the war in the Middle East.

The conflict began when the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran on Feb. 26.

This has affected global oil supplies and caused fuel prices to rise rapidly. Airlines like Air Transat said they have added fuel surcharges and are raising prices on some flights, especially during busy travel periods.

Other airlines around the world, including Qantas Airways and Air New Zealand, have increased air fare ticket prices due to the inflation caused by the war.