The report by the influential School of Policy Studies at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, said Canada's armed forces will face "massive obsolescence" within two years.

According to the study: "Over the next five years, major platforms -- the Hercules CC-130 (military airlift plane), the medium logistics vehicle wheeled (armoured vehicle), the main battle tank, the M-109 howitzer and the maritime helicopter -- will have reached (or be close to) obsolescence."

But capital spending for the military already budgeted will fall short over the next five years by 15 billion dollars (11.5 billion US), said military analyst Brian MacDonald, one of the researchers involved.

MacDonald told a press conference: "many of the Canadian forces' major platforms are at or close to the end of their effectiveness. As a consequence, Canada's military equipment is facing massive obsolescence beginning around

Martin, who takes office next week, could hold off a general election until November 2005.

Even if he does that, the panel warned: "the time required to replace major equipments, develop coherent military capabilities, and rebuild the trained effective strength of the armed forces simply exceeds the mandate of the next government, even it it were to serve a full term."

Canada is heading for "a long period ... without effective military resources, even for domestic and territorial surveillance," said MacDonald.

Following reports that Canada's search and rescue Labrador helicopters and Sea-King shipboard helicopters -- all built in the 1960s -- require more than 30 hours of servicing for every hour of flight, MacDonald said trying to extend their service "is plainly too expensive to contemplate."

Even Canada's four Iroquois-class destroyers and two auxiliary oil refeuling vessels, commissioned in the 1970s, were running out of useful service time, said the report.

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