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The First Big Wave of Syrian Refugees Arrives in Canada on December 10

On Tuesday, the government posted two requests for air transportation — one, looking for charter planes from the Middle East to Toronto and Montreal, and a second request for planes to get them from those two cities to other destinations across Canada.
Justin Ling
Montreal, CA
Canadian ministers of immigration, defense, and health speak with refugees in Jordan. Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press

Mark your calendars: the first big wave of Syrian refugees will arrive in Canada on December 10.

The federal government still doesn't know how they'll get here, however, and admits that it might have to extend its deadline once again.

Tenders posted to a government website show that it is still getting ready for their arrival.

On Tuesday, the government posted two requests for air transportation — one, looking for charter planes from the Middle East to Toronto and Montreal, and a second request for planes to get them from those two cities to other destinations across Canada.

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The flights will leave from Adana and Gaziantep, Turkey; and Amman, Jordan, and need to carry at least 200 individuals per trip.

"The number of people to be transported is scalable and the exact schedule (days and times) are yet to be confirmed," the document reads. "First day of transportation is planned to be December 10, 2015."

The government's original plan was to have all 25,000 refugees, most of which will be privately sponsored by families or groups, arrive before the end of 2015. They've since scaled that back, and are aiming instead for the end of February, 2016.

The tender, however, notes that they might have to compromise again.

"Transportation is anticipated to be required until February 29, 2016, but may be required later," it reads.

Related: #WelcomeRefugees: Canada Is Going to Spend Hundreds of Millions to Resettle 25,000 Syrians

Those documents, published to the government's procurement website, are letters of interest, and not formal invitations to bid, meaning that the Canada will still need to negotiate contracts or agreements with airlines.

In the document requesting airfare from Toronto and Montreal to elsewhere in Canada, the government notes that is looking for Canadian air carriers who are "interested to offer discounts on commercial flights to transport refugees to their assigned communities."

Interested airlines have just three days to contact the government with their interest.

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It may, however, be moot. Jordan has offered to lease its planes to Canada for the operation.

The overall cost of the resettlement program is expected to cost roughly $650 million, with a large chunk of that cost coming from the airfare.

The government is also trying to figure out what to do once the 25,000 actually get here. A separate document was posted looking for "interested companies and individuals that have the capacity, capability and availability to provide facilities and/or vacant land."

The document specifies that Ottawa is looking for a location, within 400 kilometers of "a major international airport in Ontario or Quebec" that consists of a "vacant commercial, institutional or residential motel, hotel or multiple unit buildings with a minimum of 12 units suitable for immediate occupancy. (On site kitchen, dining facilities, common areas, shower and bathroom facilities would be ideal but not essential)" or a plot of empty land, anywhere between one and 100 hectares.

The government has maintained that it does not expect to house the refugees on Canadian Forces bases, but nevertheless is preparing 6,000 units of on-base housing just in case. And now it's getting everything else ready.

A request was posted last week looking for catering services as the Canadian Forces base in Montreal.

Related: Refugees Sew Lips Shut Over New Balkan Border Policy

The document says the government is looking to feed three meals a day for as many as 250 people, starting in December, and may continue as late as March 31, 2016.

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A separate request was posted for catering services as the Canadian Forces base in Valcartier, Quebec, and says that the service may be needed for up to six months.

The Department of National Defence also posted a request for 34 CCTV surveillance cameras, although there is no specification for where they will be needed.

The government also posted a request in November, looking for company that can provide as many as 420 translators in Canada, and another 50 abroad, that are fluent in Arabic, with another 20 percent capable of translating Kurdish.

Interestingly, the government is specifically exempting itself from any trade obligations in these tender documents, citing national security. Normally, the government needs to give equal weight to American contractors under the North American Free Trade Agreement, or other suppliers from countries that have signed free trade agreements with Canada.

The flurry of activity even prompted the procurement website to post a special notice that it will be publishing these requests for information "24 hours a day, 7 days a week."

Despite the logistical challenges, the Trudeau government has billed the resettlement plan as a nation-building exercise.

"Let's live up to who we are as Canadians by tackling this challenge, seizing this opportunity," said Governor General David Johnston on Tuesday at the Forum on Welcoming Syrian Refugees to Canada, which was set-up to digest some of those logistics.

Follow Justin Ling on Twitter: @justin_ling