P-8A/P-8I ASW/MPA Aircraft Thread

mankyle

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Looks scary!!!
:eek:
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FORBIN

Lieutenant General
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any guesses?
? :)

3 Harpoon ! :cool:
USA P-8 3 Harpoon.jpg
Maybe inert in red ?

Now with the last order for 9 USN have 62 in order on 117 planned, 28 in service.
Unusual size for combat Sqns 5 in general and 8 for Sqns designated deployed but this does not mean that they are abroad.
Thinking remains about max 100 P-3C, 115 in 05/2014. A big MPA fleet !

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Jeff Head

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Indian P-8I (
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) with a new
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any guesses?

PDlfuei.jpg
The aircraft in question was photographed during a test flight at Boeing Field in Seattle by a well known aviation photographer named Josh Kaiser, as shown in the photos. it is a test flight of an aircraft that will be delivered to India..

It is some kind of antenna farm and housing. I suppose it could be some kind of SIGINT/ELINT Pod, or some kind of Comm Pod (like BACN for example), but I do not know.

It will be interesting to see if this is a new Indian requirement or not.

Here's another pic:

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Jeff Head

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Another interesting possibility for the new pod/module shown above would be if the US is developing the JSTAR replacement sensors and mechanisms and using this as a test bed for it.

Boeing has already proposed a specially configured, new build 737 for this purpose, and since the P-8 is already a MILSPEC new build 737, it would make sense to test it on a P-8.

And, since the P-8 development is being shared with the Indian aircraft, Boeing could conceivably test it on a pre-delivery Indian P-8I Neptune.

We shall see.
 

Scratch

Captain
Another interesting possibility for the new pod/module shown above would be if the US is developing the JSTAR replacement sensors and mechanisms and using this as a test bed for it.

Boeing has already proposed a specially configured, new build 737 for this purpose, and since the P-8 is already a MILSPEC new build 737, it would make sense to test it on a P-8.
...

Jeff, that thought raised a question in my mind.

It's about the current state / progress of the MP-RTIP. If by any chance you happen to know about it.

The Muli-Platform Radar Technology Insertion Program is about 15 years old I think and was ment to produce a new sensor for the (no cancled) future E-10 J-STARS. It was also supposed to be fitted, in a smaller version, to the NATO AGS Global Hawk Block 40 aircraft. Old articles say the first such UAV was to roll off the production line in 2011. There have been, butgetary I think, problems to the whole AGS initiative as well, and I'm also not aware of it's current status.

Do you believe the above could be a test of an MP-RTIP prototype ment to be fitted to a Global Hawk? With all those little antennas underneath especially, the pod doesn't really look like it might hold an AESA ground surveillance radar. I would assume the data would be streamed off the GH via some fuselage mounted antenna.

All that being said, what is the current status of the MP-RTIP?

And, finally, here a link I find to be of interest:
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Scratch

Captain
To continue with the above, I just came across an interesting article on flightglobal regarding the JSTARS replacement program. The focus on the article is on the possible platform providers, as opposed to the (sensor) prime contractors.
Interesting info never the less. The proposed Boeing, I guess, would be the biggest platform out of all the contenders.

Since the article is a bit long, I only put the intro here. And the artist impressions of the three contenders (Boeing, L-M Bombardier, Northrop Gulfstream)

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jlVZqah.jpg
T0ZhDwW.jpg
Do8cr3P.jpg
 

Jeff Head

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Jeff, that thought raised a question in my mind.

Do you believe the above could be a test of an MP-RTIP prototype meant to be fitted to a Global Hawk? With all those little antennas underneath especially, the pod doesn't really look like it might hold an AESA ground surveillance radar. I would assume the data would be streamed off the GH via some fuselage mounted antenna.

All that being said, what is the current status of the MP-RTIP?
Well, the Multi-Platform Radar Technology Insertion Program (MP-RTIP) program is continuing and actually has a designation now. It is AN/ZPY-2.

The program continues with system development, but has also moved beyond pure demonstration to the initial deployment phase.

As you know, MR-RTIP uses AESA technology coupled with commercial off-the-shelf hardware to develop several important capabilities. This includes a long range, very high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) capability, a ground moving target indicator (GMTI) capability, and an air target tracking capability.

The radar is meant to be modular and scalable. That's how it will be able to be applied to multiple airborne platforms.

MP-RTIP, as it matures really promises improved combat identification, improved target tracking particularly in time critical situations, and a new air-to-air capability particularly related to cruise missile defense.

Northrop Grumman and Raytheon are teaming together to develop the radar at the U.S. Air Force Electronic Systems Center.

In fact, in June of this year, Northrup Grumman unveiled the first NATO Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) aircraft.

This is a modified Global Hawk aircraft fitted for the Ground surveillance role. PArt of its equipment includes the MR-RTIP capability being developed by Northrup and Raytheon. This aircraft will be able to fly for up to 30 hours at a time in a the high-altitude long-endurance (HALE) mode. With the initial installment of the MP-RTIP, it will be able to fuse its sensor data of targets and provide detailed imagery of them.

Here's a couple of pics:

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FORBIN

Lieutenant General
Registered Member
Again
USA P-8 Harpoon.png
USA P-8A Poseidon AGM-84 Harpoon.jpg

Now 29 delivered mainly based to Jacksonville used by VP-5, 8, 10 ( the last to receive ), 16, 30 OCU and 45. Next year a new VP-26.
 

Scratch

Captain
With the UK publishing it's SDSR in about 2 month I think, it seems Boeing is getting ready to press the P-8 to the UK market. The armed forces of which seem to be inclined to favour that aircraft.
The question would then be if the UK can afford it in sufficient numbers.

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LONDON — With publication of Britain’s strategic defense and security review (SDSR) little more than two months away, potential contenders for a likely requirement to plug a gap in maritime patrol were making their case at last week’s DSEI show for why the government should look beyond the Royal Air Force’s apparent preferred choice of buying the Boeing P-8 aircraft without having a competition.

Five years ago, the axing of BAE’s Nimrod MRA4 program before it was completed turned out to be the Conservative government's most controversial decision of a 2010 SDSR fashioned by financial problems rather than strategy.

Now, embarrassed by having to call in allied aircraft to hunt suspected Russian nuclear submarines lurking in the waters near a Scottish ballistic missile submarine base and for other incidents, the government has committed to a decision in the 2015 review whether to plug that capability gap with a new platform.

Given the recent support for refreshing Britain’s ISTAR capabilities from Prime Minister David Cameron and other senior political and military figures, few doubt the government will opt for re-establishing a maritime patrol force, but few know how it will be done, when and at what cost.

DSEI was alive with companies seeking to influence government deliberations over whether to open a competition rather than go for the quick, off-the-shelf answer and purchase a P-8 jet already ordered by the US Navy, India and Australia.

The RAF’s preferred option is the P-8, according to Royal United Services Institute think tankers John Louth and Peter Roberts in a report on the maritime patrol capability published Sept. 11.

“One or two noises coming from senior RAF officers suggest that the P-8 is in pole position,” said the analysts.

One executive said, “the big fear among most of Boeing's rivals is that whatever the question is the customer's answer is the P-8.”

The aircraft doesn’t come cheap, though, and despite the MoD securing a better than expected budget settlement up to 2020, it’s not clear whether the British military could afford to purchase the nine or more aircraft needed to support its nuclear submarine fleet and other uses. ...
 
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