P8 A aircraft

The US Navy’s Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS), the Patrol Squadron Thirty VP-30, has taken delivery of the 15th low-rate initial production P-8A aircraft.

Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 11 in Jacksonville, Florida, commodore captain Sean Liedman said: "This aircraft adds to our growing fleet of P-8As and bolsters our capacity to begin the transition of the fourth P-8 squadron in Jacksonville."

Mainly aimed at replacing the P-3C Orion as a long-range anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft, the latest delivery comes in the wake of the first ever operational deployment for the P-8A Poseidon.

In July, the War Eagles of Patrol Squadron 16 (VP-16) successfully deployed the P-8A maritime patrol aircraft to support the commander of Task Force (CTF) 72, through the western Pacific area of operations with anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

The aircraft provided intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, maritime domain awareness, search and rescue, carrier strike group coordination and theatre security cooperation tasks.

"This aircraft adds to our growing fleet of P-8As and bolsters our capacity to begin the transition of the fourth P-8 squadron in Jacksonville."

VP-16 commanding officer commander Dan Papp said: "The P-8A exceeded P-3 performance in every historical measure of performance, including mission completion rate, on-time takeoff rate, number of in-flight aborts, and persistence at range.

"The P-8A proved to be a game-changer for [the] theatre anti-submarine warfare (TASW) in the western Pacific due to its increased range and endurance, higher dash speed to get to the area of action faster, and larger passive search area due to its capability to process 64 vice 32 sonobuoys.

"Additionally, P-8’s acoustic processor demonstrated better reliability and longer passive detection ranges than a P-3."

Over the course of the deployment, the P-8A’s ALQ-240 electronic support measures (ESM) system extended the tactical surveillance range, while its datalink and sensor fusion capability improved aircrew situational awareness and provided higher-fidelity tactical reporting to operational commanders.


Image: The US Navy’s P-8A Poseidon aircraft taking off from Naval Air Station Jacksonville. Photo: courtesy of the US Navy, ClarkPierce / Released.

Defence Technology