The P-8 also has the advantage that it gets you where you are going faster. Its cruising speed is 440 knots (850km/h) compared with the propeller driven P-3's still impressive 328 knots or 610 km/h.
Just not with all the capability of a P-3 Orion. If anything, the P-8 has the potential to complement P-3 operations.
Interesting too: In 2008, the U.S. Navy deleted the requirement for the P-8A to be equipped with magnetic anomaly detection (MAD) equipment. This was part of an effort to reduce P-8A aircraft weight by 3,500 lb to improve aircraft range and endurance. P-8s for the Indian Navy will continue to retain MAD. Does anyone know if Australia's P-8s will have MAD?
I would also add that for a country the size of Australia, expecting 8 replacement aircraft (plus the blue-sky-marketing dream of UAVs) to do the job of 18 existing and operationally mature aircraft would need some real demonstrated proof.
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I must admit, I would expect we would prefer range/loiter over speed for ASW work; especially when it comes with a 2x quantity bonus.
Still the comparison with the F-35 is rather unfair. After all, the P-8 is a functioning warplane.
The P8 may be faster, however has anyone worked out how large the area surrounding Australia is.
Eight or 20, still not enough.
Interesting, I didn't know that only the P-8I variant for India will include the actual MAD!
So basically... the initial USN deliveries (prior to a future ELINT package integration) will be an expensive Sonar buoy dispenser which will need to be accompanied by a P-3 to do the actual monitoring??
If even somewhat accurate, then that sounds a little like LCS mentality if you ask me.
That being said, I wonder if it could be adapted as some sort of persistent Area of operation CAS/strike platform for the USAF? Perhaps not quite exactly a candidate for the NGB(??), but with integration of the proposed ground Radar pod mounted under the belly, and considering the internal bays and external points... why not load up a ton of those talked-about 100km ranged Brimstone 3/SPEAR rounds and loiter over a zone for 6 hours with about 10x F-35 worth of ordnance?
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