Boeing announced on Thursday that it has delivered the 150th P-8 Poseidon multi-mission maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft. Of the 150 delivered, 112 went to the U.S. Navy, 12 to Australia, 12 to India, nine to the United Kingdom and five to Norway. The 150th P-8 will be based at Maryland’s Naval Air Station Patuxent River and operated by Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) One.
“There are now 150 P-8s around the world delivering confidence and an unmatched capability to our global customers,” said Stu Voboril, Boeing vice president and program manager for P-8 Programs. “Our focus has been, and will be, on delivering the world’s best maritime patrol aircraft.”
The Boeing P-8 Poseidon was developed as a maritime patrol aircraft capable of missions including anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and search and rescue. According to the company, it shares 86 percent commonality with the 737NG. Boeing reports that the global P-8 fleet has logged more than 450,000 flight hours to date.
Unless you have something like a PBY or Albatross, it seems like an aircraft can only accomplish half of a “search and rescue” mission on the ocean.
Correction: I should have said ‘airplane’ and not ‘aircraft’ there.
Well, it is a surveillance aircraft just like the P3 it replaces, with ability to drop weapons and sonobuoys plus fire missiles.
Want rescue capability:
– try a big SAR helo like the Canadian one based on the EH-101. BUT helos lack range (a commercial version of the Chinook did relatively well out of Alaska IIRC).
– so perhaps the tilt-rotor Osprey
– buy the Shin Meywa US-2 amphibious flying boat from Japan, designed for somewhat heavy seas
– buy the two remaining Martin Mars biggie flying boats
– equip P-8 to drop pumps and life rafts