Frontiers November 2014 37 P-8A Poseidon has become a model for military acquisition—and future Boeing jetliner derivatives By Eric Fetters-Walp PHOTOS: (Left) A P-8 fuselage moves through final assembly in Renton, Wash. (Right) Hector Serrano, a Commercial Airplanes electrician, mates connectors for mission systems on an aircraft. BOB FERGUSON/BOEING The P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft revolutionized the way Boeing designs and assembles military aircraft based on commercial airplanes well before the first production model was delivered in 2012. Now, with more than two dozen P-8s delivered to the U.S. and Indian navies, the anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare aircraft is proving itself in service. Since the U.S. Navy formally introduced it into service late last year, the P-8 has taken part in military exercises around the globe, joined in the international search for missing Malaysia Airlines jetliner MH 370 and been deployed to patrol the Pacific Ocean. In July, the U.S. Navy’s first operational P-8A Poseidon squadron returned to Jacksonville, Fla., from Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, completing the aircraft’s first deployment. That Navy squadron, VP-16, used the aircraft’s intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities conduct anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare patrols. “From the very beginning of deployment, the P-8A far exceeded any expectation that we had,” said Cmdr. Daniel Papp, VP-16 squadron commanding officer. “We could not be happier with the P-8A’s performance. We got more out of the capability, and
Frontiers November 2014 Issue
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