DRA February 2020: Armed and dangerous – Maritime Patrol Aircraft IN THE Asia-Pacific
Across the Asia-Pacific, a growing number of maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) are entering service at the same time as navies acquire submarines en masse as they modernise their fleets and keep up with regional competitors. With more than 300 submarines predicted to be operating in the East and South China Seas within the decade, well-armed MPAs are arriving in numbers to counter them, as well as surface vessels.
AUSTRALIA Australia is in the process of retiring its 15 remaining Lockheed AP-3C Orion turboprops, and replacing them with far more capable Boeing P-8A Poseidon twin jets. To date, 15 have been ordered, with a dozen delivered since November 2016. Final entry into service is planned for 2022, with the last AP-3C to be withdrawn the following year. Poseidons have already been deployed internationally, notably to the Middle East, and help patrol Australia’s 15 million square nautical miles of ocean
Read more in the current issue of DRA (Free to read with registration or via Facebook/Linkedin): https://defencereviewasia.partica.online/defence-review-asia/dra-february-2020/features/armed-and-dangerous-maritime-patrol-aircraft-in-the-asia-pacific
