P-8 Poseidon MMA: Long-Range Maritime Patrol, and More
May 13, 2012 14:00 EDT
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Maritime surveillance and patrol is becoming more and more important, but the USA’s P-3 Orion fleet is falling apart. The P-8A emerged from the ashes of the P-7 Long Range Air ASW (Anti-Submarine Warfare) Capable Aircraft program that was begun in 1988. That program originally envisaged an improved P-3, but cost overruns, slow progress, and interest in opening the competition to commercial designs, led to the P-7’s cancellation for default in 1990. The successor MMA program was begun in March 2000, and Boeing beat Lockheed’s “Orion 21” with a design based on their ubiquitous 737 passenger jet.
Filling the P-3 Orion’s shoes is certainly no easy task. What missions will the new P-8A Poseidon face? What do we know about the platform, the project team, and ongoing developments? Will the P-3’s level of global customer coverage give its successor a comparable level of export opportunities? Australia and India have already signed on, but has the larger market shifted in the interim?
- P-8A Poseidon: Platform & Capabilities
- P-8A Poseidon: History & Program
- P-8A Poseidon: Contracts & Events [updated]
- News & Analysis: India’s Interest, and Broader Export Potential
- Additional Readings & Sources
- Additional Readings & Sources: News & Updates
Stay in step with the P-8 Poseidon program, and have all DII materials instantly available by becoming a subscriber. This article brings into focus the complex implementation of the Navy's new patrol aircraft, including:
- Background on this third-round maritime patrol aircraft and its gamut of responsibilities including search and destroy, sea and land surveillance, missile attacks to land or sea, flexible response to emerging military doctrines
- 12 photos, including aircraft design cutaways, weapons and surveillance systems
- Recap of the head-to-head contract battle between Boeing and Lockheed
- Insider quotes: "MMA will have to be flown high, low, fast and slow and remain on-station for very long periods of time while carrying a variety of weapon and sensor packages."
- News on key corporate players including Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, CFM International, Northrop-Grumman Electronic Systems, Raytheon, Smiths Aerospace, Spirit Aerosystems, and United Technologies
- Participation by foreign buyers, including Australia and possibly India, Canada, et. al.
- The changes that have split the maritime patrol aircraft market around the globe.
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