US Navy Poseidon passes evaluation milestone
The US Navy’s new P-8A Poseidon Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft (MMA) has passed its Initial Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E).
The maritime surveillance aircraft was found ‘operationally effective, operationally suitable, and ready for introduction’, it emerged, following a statement released by the US Naval Air Systems Command at Naval Air Station Patuxent River on 1 July.
Boeing’s P-8A patrol and reconnaissance aircraft is the navy’s replacement for the P-3 Orion. As a result of the successful IOT&E the P-8A programme is on track for the first operational deployment at the end of 2013. The first P-8A squadron will be deployed with the P-3 and EP-3 squadrons.
‘It is a great day for the navy and the fleet. We are proud to add the P-8 to the navy’s weapons inventory and the deployment cycle later this year,’ Capt Scott Dillon, Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft Program Office (PMA-290) programme manager, said in the statement.
This milestone was achieved shortly after the P-8A successfully launched a Harpoon AGM-84D Block IC missile during a live fire event on 24 June. The test saw a direct hit on a Low Cost Modular Target after approximately six minutes of flight time during testing in California at the US Navy’s Point Mugu Sea Test Range. The test validated the weapons hardware and software integration.
The Harpoon weapon system has been operational with the navy for more than 40 years and the completion of the test launch from the P-8A was a significant milestone in the programme.
‘The success of this testing evolution brings us one step closer to Initial Operational Capability [IOC] this fall,’ Dillon said at the time of the harpoon testing.
Boeing is contracted to build and support 24 P-8A MMA in total as part of three low-rate initial production (LRIP) contracts awarded in 2011 and 2012. On 29 March Boeing officially handed over the seventh production P-8A, the first delivery from the second LRIP contract that was awarded to the company in November 2011. The US Navy plans to purchase a total of 117 P-8As. The final P-8A from the first LRIP was delivered in February 2013. The first production P-8A Poseidon made its initial flight on 7 July 2011 and was officially delivered to the US Navy 4 March 2012.
Alongside US commitments, Boeing delivered the first of eight P-8I Maritime Patrol Aircraft to India in May 2013, an aircraft designed to replace the Indian Navy’s Tupolev Tu-142M under a contract signed in 2009. The P-8I is a customised export version of the P-8A and has unique design features to meet the Indian requirement, such as an Indian-built subsystem.
The MMA is based on the design of the next-generation Boeing 737-800 platform and is able to support naval maritime patrol mission requirements. It is designed for anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare missions that require long range maritime reconnaissance capabilities.
More from Naval Warfare
-
Netherlands to acquire Finnish littoral assault craft in LCVP replacement programme
The Dutch navy had reportedly been considering BAE Systems’ Littoral Strike Craft to replace its ageing landing craft fleet.
-
Swedish navy moves to final phase of Blekinge-class sub production with new Saab order
Saab Kockums was initially awarded the contract to build two A26 submarines for the Royal Swedish Navy in 2015, but the programme has faced delays and escalating costs.
-
Germany goes for more US equipment for F127 frigates with SPY-6 radar choice
If the foreign military sale request is approved, Germany would be the first country outside the US to acquire the technology, which is currently used extensively by the US Navy.
-
Beyond GPS: How LEO satellites are changing the game in naval navigation
Satellite navigation is increasingly critical for global maritime defence, and Low Earth Orbit satellites are rapidly overtaking the traditional and more widely used Medium Earth Orbit option as they are less susceptible to jamming or spoofing.
-
US continues to review AUKUS submarine deal as HII ticks off new Virginia-class sea trials
The initial sea trials for Virginia-class SSN 798 conducted by Newport News Shipbuilding division and the US Navy marked an “important step”, but the ongoing AUKUS review casts a shadow over what the progress means for the partner nations.
-
US Navy seeks AI software suppliers to bolster air and missile defence
The US Navy is conducting market research to find AI software products for the Collaborative Integrated Air and Missile Defence Planning Programme.