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Australia to buy P-8A Poseidon - News.com

dimsum

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http://www.news.com.au/national/breaking-news/aust-to-buy-new-poseidon-aircraft/story-e6frfku9-1226833595123

"The federal government is set to spend up to $7 billion to buy eight Boeing P-8A Poseidon long range maritime patrol aircraft to replace the RAAF's ageing AP-3C Orion aircraft."

A move that surprised absolutely no one in the ADF.
 
"The RAAF operates 19 Lockheed AP-3C Orions which entered service in the mid-1980s."

Jeez, by Canadian standards their old planes are barely broken in yet.  I wonder if we can get a deal on these gently used Orions?
 
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-05-23/raaf-prepares-for-generation-change/6491084

Felix the Cat has been the mascot of the Royal Australian Air Force's 11 squadron, based at Edinburgh in northern Adelaide, for more than 70 years.

The feline cartoon character was adopted as the squadron's symbol during World War II, when pilots flew Catalina flying boats that were painted black and nicknamed "black cats".

Some will need no pilots at all, with the Defence Department awaiting confirmation from Canberra it will have a fleet of MQ-4C Triton drones.

The first of eight P-8A Poseidon maritime surveillance aircraft will also arrive in Australia this year, and RAAF pilots are already training for the aircraft in Florida.  A second fleet of Tritons is likely to follow.
 
Schindler's Lift said:
"The RAAF operates 19 Lockheed AP-3C Orions which entered service in the mid-1980s."

Jeez, by Canadian standards their old planes are barely broken in yet.  I wonder if we can get a deal on these gently used Orions?

???

What are the total hours per airframe flown, what is their YFR, mid life upgrades etc.  There is more to it than when it entered service.

Our tails likely have close'ish birthdays to theirs.  I flew one recently on its 34th birthday.
 
Dimsum said:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-05-23/raaf-prepares-for-generation-change/6491084

Looks like they will be in decent shape ISR-wise.  Time to get those payloader slots away from those pesky ACSOs!  >:D
 
Eye In The Sky said:
Looks like they will be in decent shape ISR-wise.  Time to get those payloader slots away from those pesky ACSOs!  >:D

Not when most of the Payload Operators here are RAAF Air Combat Officer - Navs  ;)
 
They had to give the Navs something to do, they were replaced by a Garmin.  ;)

Who operates the camera on the P3/P8?
 
Dolphin_Hunter said:
They had to give the Navs something to do, they were replaced by a Garmin.  ;)

Well, it's not like toast makes itself.  There is always that crucial function available  >:D

 
Dolphin_Hunter said:
They had to give the Navs something to do, they were replaced by a Garmin.  ;)

Who operates the camera on the P3/P8?

AEAs - their version of AESOPs. 

There are 2 ACO-NAV equivalent to what we have, plus an ACO-SEM (Sensor Employment Manager, basically a commissioned AEA).  The RAAF lumps a bunch of things into the ACO category, including Air Battle Manager (Air Weapons Controller in the CF) and SEM, which I'm not really sure we have an equivalent. 
 
The 30-year old P-3s cited in the article are only the P-3Cs. The Bs entered service late 60s/early 70s (I forget which) and paid-off when the second batch of Cs were delivered.

There are plenty of mixed feelings at RAAF Edinburgh about all this.........

BTW the eight P-8s on order are widely expected to be complimented by an additional four, to be announced in the forthcoming DCP.
 
OTR1 said:
The 30-year old P-3s cited in the article are only the P-3Cs. The Bs entered service late 60s/early 70s (I forget which) and paid-off when the second batch of Cs were delivered.

There are plenty of mixed feelings at RAAF Edinburgh about all this.........

BTW the eight P-8s on order are widely expected to be complimented by an additional four, to be announced in the forthcoming DCP.

I'm sure some of those mixed feelings are from the SEMs who may or may not have a job once the P-8s are in.  There is no other airframe that has them in the RAAF either.
 
Pic attached of first RAAF P-8, in Seattle.

Just to update the thread, the DWP confirmed the 8 + 4 orders on the books, with three more to come.


 

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OTR1 said:
Pic attached of first RAAF P-8, in Seattle.

Just to update the thread, the DWP confirmed the 8 + 4 orders on the books, with three more to come.

Nice looking bird with the 11 Sqn tail art.
 
Eye In The Sky said:
Yup, they are purdy birds alright.  15 total...all stationed at the same field, no?

Should be - all of the RAAF MPA squadrons are in Adelaide.
 
Indeed.

The P-8 facilities at Edinburgh are optimised for 16 a/c. A good time to be a local building contractor......

A couple of new pics attached.
 

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Are they laid out inside similar to the USN P-8s?  I was on one of those with VP 8 last fall, very nice lay out.
 
Internal layout is identical, as is the fit.

Only difference is the accents.  ;D
 
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