Country of origin:

United States of America

Description:

Multi-mission maritime aircraft

Power Plant:

Two 27,300 lbst CFM International CFM56-7B27A turbofans

Specifications:

Armament:

Anti-submarine warfare torpedoes, depth charges, including Harpoon anti-shipping
missiles, sonobuoys, mines; four external hardpoints

History:

In 2007 Australia joined a multi-national program to participate in the development of the new US Navy multi-mission maritime aircraft, the replacement for the US Navy’s Lockheed P-3 Orion fleet, thus expanding the Australian military’s opportunity to further develop intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance in this part of the Pacific Ocean. For many years the RAAF operated two Squadrons of P-3C Orions, these eventually being up-graded to AP-3C standard, in the long-range maritime patrol role, being tasked with anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, and maritime and electronic reconnaissance duties. In more recent times the role of the Maritime Patrol Group has included conducting maritime patrols in support of civil authorities.

The Boeing P-8 Poseidon, initially known as the MMA (Multi-Mission Maritime Aircraft), was the winner of a competition held by the US Navy for an Orion replacement, the new aircraft using the Boeing 737-800 airframe but using the much heavier but modified Boeing 737-900 wing to accommodate the vicissitudes of the more demanding low level patrol operational envelope.

The P-8A was developed by a Boeing-led team which included CFM International, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and Smiths Aerospace and was known at Boeing as the 737-8VFER. The US Navy’s initial order was for 108 Boeing P-8As to replace 223 Lockheed P-3s, and eight were ordered for the Indian Navy. These aircraft had external pylons, as had the Australian aircraft, for a wide-range of stores, a sonobuoy dispensing system, an internal weapons bay for guided anti-submarine warfare torpedoes, depth charges, or other stores, and a comprehensive maritime mission avionics suite.

Power was supplied by two CFM56-7B27A turbofans, the same engine as installed on the Boeing E-7A Wedgetail, CFM International being a joint company comprising Snecma Moteurs and General Electric.  The engines drove 180 kVA generators to manage the aircraft’s electrical and cooling equipment. The aircraft zero fuel weight was 62,733 kg (138,300 lb) and internal fuel load was 34,097 kg (75,169 lb). The aircraft had a crew of nine and the mission profile of the Poseidon involved a cruise to patrol area at high altitude, a descent to lower altitude to perform anti-submarine warfare (ASW) patrols, and sustained slow on station patrol work to reduce fuel consumption.

The fuselage was built at the Boeing facility in Wichita, Kansas, and production assembly occurred at Renton Field in Washington State where quality and performance acceptance flight testing also took place. First flight of the prototype (c/n T-1) was made on 25 April 2009 at Renton Field, touching down at Boeing Field in Seattle after 3 hrs 31 mins in the air. The first five P-8As were used in the test program with the US Navy, testing commencing to be carried out at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.

Raytheon provided the APS-137 maritime surveillance radar and signals intelligence equipment, a GPS anti-jam, integrated friend or foe, and towed decoy self-protection system, a broadcast information system, and secure UHF sitcom capability. Smiths Industries provided flight management and stores management systems. A weapons bay was installed aft of the wingbox, this allowing the littoral surveillance radar systems antenna to be installed on the forward fuselage as part of future upgrades. This unit eventually would provide land and littoral multiple small target tracking capability and would provide GPS targeting co-ordinates for weapons delivery. The aircraft had two air-to-air or air-to-surface missile underwing hardpoints.

The Poseidon was ordered by the Australian Government to replace the Lockheed P-3 Orion in RAAF service and fulfill Phase 2 of the Maritime Patrol and Response Aircraft (MPRA) for Project Air 7000, the P-3 to remain in service until 2018, being retired in favour of a cross between manned and un-manned aircraft, the latter being Broad Area Maritime Surveillance un-manned aerial vehicles. The Australian Government had previously declined a US offer to join the MMA program in 2005 as a development partner.

The P-8A completed its critical design review in July 2007 and the first aircraft for delivery to the US Navy entered service in 2013. As noted, the prototype P-8A, N541BA (c/n T-1), made its first flight (3½ hours) from Boeing’s Renton plant near Seattle on 25 April 2009, the second (US Navy serial 953 – c/n T-2) being rolled out in Navy markings shortly thereafter.

In mid 2009 the Australian Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding to jointly develop upgrades, these being known as Spiral 1, the first tranche of improvements, the Department of Defence announcing it was to gain information on the Boeing P-8A to support acquisition and through-life support decisions.

The Australian Defence White Paper released in 2009 indicated a plan to purchase eight P-8As to replace the AP-3Cs under Air 7000 Phase 2, the first aircraft A47-001 to be delivered in early 2017 and to enter service in 2018. The first four aircraft were authorised as part of the 14 August 2014 FRP-2 contract and the fleet integrated the AGM-84 Block 1G Harpoon anti-ship missile.

In June 2011 two US Navy P-8As from the Air and Test Evaluation 1 Squadron (VX-1), based at Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland, visited Canberra, ACT to be shown to Defence Department personnel before joining in TAMEX, an Australian – United States joint anti-submarine exercise off the West Australian coast.

During the search in March and April 2014 for the Boeing 777 of Malaysia Airlines, Flight MH-370, off Australia’s west coast in the Indian Ocean, the US Navy operated five Boeing P-8As, these being serials 168429, 168430, 168433, 168438 and 168439 operating from Perth airport, WA.

As noted, on 21 February 2014 eight examples were ordered for the RAAF with options on a further four, the first to be delivered in 2017 with the fleet of eight to be operational by 2021, these aircraft replacing the 18 Lockheed AP-3Cs flown from RAAF Edinburgh, SA by Nos 10 & 11 Squadrons. In the Australian Defence White Paper released on 25 February 2016 it was announced that a further seven P-8As would be acquired in two batches during the next decade.

First P-8A for the RAAF A47-001 (c/n 62288) was flown for the first time on 6 May 2016 carrying the civil test registration N940DS, this aircraft being displayed on both the ground and in the air at the Australian International Air Show at Avalon, VIC in March 2017. The second aircraft A47-002 flew into Amberley, QLD on 10 March 2017. Five aircraft had arrived at Edinburgh by the end of 2017 and the 12th was due to arrive in March 2020.

The original plan was for the type to operate with Nos 10 and 11 Squadrons from RAAF Edinburgh, but, in 2017, this was changed to the type being consolidated with No 11 Squadron, with No 10 Squadron to later operate either the Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton or the Gulfstream 550 being acquired for the Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance roles.

First RAAF overseas deployment of the type was to the Royal Malaysian Air Force Base at Butterworth as part of Operation Gateway, the aircraft carrying out routine maritime surveillance observing merchant and naval shipping in the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea during mid-2017.

In mid 2017 No 10 Squadron operated the type in the Australia – US Talisman/Sabre exercises. It formed part of the Blue Force with US Navy Boeing P-8As and was tasked to protect the multi-national amphibious force in Shoalwater Bay from an attack by the ‘USS Virginia’ class nuclear submarine in the area.

In mid 2018 the New Zealand Government announced it was ordering four examples of the Boeing P-8A Poseidon to replace the P-3K2 Orion in RNZAF service, with delivery to take place and service entry in 2023, the Orions to run out of time by 2025. Because of airfield limitations at RNZAF Whenuapai, No 5 Squadron, when it takes delivery of the aircraft, will move to RNZAF Ohakea. The US Government approved the sale of the aircraft with associated equipment and support, including engines, electro-optical and infrared sensors, radar, an acoustic system, electronic support measures, laser transmitters, missile warning sensors, embedded GPS systems, system processors and mission software. Serials of the RNZAF Poseidons are NZ4801 to NZ4804.

On 12 July 2018 Australian RAAF P-8A A47-006, during exercise RimPac, was the first Australian aircraft to fire an AJM-84T Harpoon anti-ship missile at the Pacific Missile Range facility off the coast of Hawaii, the firing being part of reaching Final Operational Capability of the type. The missile was fired at a de-commissioned US Navy vessel, the former ‘USS Racine’.  Australian P-8As had previously flown with Harpoons loaded on wing stations but none had been fired. During the exercise it was expected a P-8A would be launching torpedoes. RimPac is the world’s largest multi-national maritime exercise with 25 nations taking part.

The RAAF P-8As delivered were A47-001 (c/n 62288 – ex N940DS), A47-002 (c/n 62289 – ex N956DS), A47-003 (c/n 62290 – ex N959DS), A47-004 (c/n 62293 – ex N974DS), A47-005 (c/n 63179 – ex N832DS), A47-006 (c/n 63182 – ex N849DS), A47-007 (c/n 63187 – ex N862DS), A47-008 (c/n 63191 – ex N872DS), A47-009 (c/n 64165 – ex N391DS), A47-010 (c/n 64166 – ex N397DS), A47-011 (c/n 64167 – ex N398DS) and A47-012 (c/n 64168 – ex N468DS).