Kicking it Up a Notch: Poseidon’s Unmanned BAMS Companion
Related Stories: Air Reconnaissance, Americas - USA, Boeing, C4ISR, FOCUS Articles, General Atomics, Issues - International, New Systems Tech, Northrop-Grumman, RFPs, Transformation, UAVs
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The world’s P-3 Orion fleets have served for a long time, and many are reaching the end of their lifespans. In the USA, and possibly beyond, the new P-8 Poseidon Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft will take up the P-3’s role. While the P-8’s base 737-based airframe offers strong service & maintenance arguments in its favor, the airframe is expensive enough that the P-3s cannot be replaced on a 1:1 basis.
In order to extend the P-8 fleet’s reach, and provide additional capabilities, the Poseidon is expected to work with at least one companion platform under the BAMS (Broad Area Maritime Surveillance) and/or PUMAS (Persistent Unmanned Aerial Surveillance) programs. The BAMS UAV competition is widely seen as a fight between Northrop Grumman’s high-flying, jet-powered RQ-4 Global Hawk, and General Atomics’ turboprop-powered Mariner (a cousin of its MQ-9 Reaper); but Boeing entered an optionally unmanned G550 business jet.
This DID FOCUS Article explains the BAMS concept, the program’s key requirements, and its international angle. We’ll also cover ongoing contracts and key events related to the program, which chose Northrop Grumman’s navalized RQ-4N Gloal Hawk.
The Lockheed Martin/General Atomics team had protested that award to the GAO – but their protest was recently denied, leaving the program free to move forward.
- Next-Gen Maritime Patrol Systems: Issues and Options
- BAMS: Requirements and Missions
- BAMS: The International Angle [updated]
- BAMS: The Industry Team [new]
- BAMS: Contracts & Key Events [updated]
- Additional Readings & Sources
Stay on top of the Navy's investment into the BAMS aircraft development, when you subscribe to DII. Our cross-linked article network and reference materials include:
- Timeline of the contract tender with a comparison of UAVs from General Atomics, Northrop Grumman and Boeing
- 9 photos and illustrations
- Tracking of the project selection process and the April 2008 award to Northrop Grumman
- The system, piece-by-piece, who is contributing? (Northrop Grumman with Aurora Flight Sciences, L-3 Communications, Raytheon, Rolls-Royce, Vought and Sierra Nevada).
- The mission basics: BAMS with the P-8 Poseidon and the Navy's planned "EP-X"
- Assessment of BAMS capabilities including a 3,000-nm mission radius, sustaining flights of 10 hours and autonomous flight with icing or turbulence
- Potential international customers, including India, Australia, and Canada
- More DID coverage including: "P-8 Poseidon MMA: Long-Range Maritime Patrol, and More," "Follow-Up: Rear Adm. Michael L. Holmes on The USA's P-3C Force," "Global Hawk UAV Prepares for Maritime Role"
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