A formal UK P-8A Poseidon MRA1 handover ceremony between Boeing and the RAF took place at the manufacturers assembly facility in Seattle on 29 October, in an exchange that will eventually lead to the aircraft arriving in country next year.
Before then, the platform will be stationed at the US Naval Air Station in Jacksonville, Florida for training purposes, ahead of delivery to RAF Lossiemouth in Q1 2020.
A first on schedule delivery hints at an efficient acquisition, one that also renews a much needed maritime patrol capability for the UK, having been without a permanent long