Submarines are increasingly lurking in seas around the world, and the US Navy's high-tech Poseidon is there to hunt them
Christopher Woody May 14, 2018, 10:40 PM
The US Navy announced this month that it was restarting the 2nd Fleet to oversee the western Atlantic Ocean, including the North Atlantic and the US East Coast.
The decision comes after several years of tensions between NATO members and Russia — and several warnings from Western officials about growing Russian naval activity, including more sophisticated and more active submarines.
NATO has responded in kind, with a special focus on antisubmarine warfare — a capability that has waned among Western navies since the end of the Cold War.
For NATO members and other countries, augmenting antisubmarine abilities means not only adding ships but also advanced maritime-patrol aircraft to scour the sea. A number of aircraft on the market fill this role, but the US-made P-8A Poseidon is among the most sophisticated.
"What it can do from the air, and tracking submarines, is almost like Steven Spielberg," Michael Fabey, author of the 2017 book "Crashback," about China-US tensions in the Pacific, told Business Insider earlier this year.
"I went up on a training flight," he said, "and basically ... they could read the insignia on a sailor's hat from thousands of feet above."
"It's not the aircraft itself of course," he added, but "all the goodies they put in there."
'The best ASW ... platform in the fleet'
In 2004, the US Navy picked the P-8A Poseidon to succeed the P-3 Orion, which had been in operation since the 1960s. The first Poseidon entered service in 2013, and more than 60 are in service now.
The jet-powered P-8A is based on Boeing's 737 airliner, but it is specialized to withstand more strain, with aluminum skin that is 50% thicker than a commercial 737. Every surface is equipped for deicing.
A commercial 737 can be built in two weeks, but a P-8A takes roughly two months.
boeing p-8 poseidon .jpg
US Navy crew members on board a P-8A Poseidon assist search-and-rescue operations for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 in the Indian Ocean, March 16, 2014.US Navy
It has a ceiling of 41,000 feet, and, unlike the P-3, is designed to do most of its work at high altitude, where it has better fuel efficiency and its sensors are more effective. The Poseidon's top speed of 564 mph is also 200 mph faster than the older Orion, allowing it to get to its station faster and reposition more quickly.
Among its sensors is the APY-10 radar, which can detect and identify ships on the surface and even pick up submarine periscopes. It can also provide long-distance imagery of ports or cities and perform surveillance along coasts or on land.
An electro-optical/infrared turret on the bottom of the plane offers a shorter-range search option and can carry up to seven sensors, including an image intensifier, a laser rangefinder, and infrared, which can detect heat from subs or from fires.
The Poseidon's ALQ-240 Electronic Support Measure acts as an electromagnetic sensor and can track radar emitters. Its Advanced Airborne Sensor can do 360-degree scans on land and water. Other electronic surveillance measures allow it to passively monitor a wide area without detection.
The original P-8A design did not include the Magnetic Anomaly Detector that the P-3 carried to detect the metal in sub's hulls. The MAD's exclusion was controversial, but the P-8A can deploy sonar buoys to track subs, and recent upgrades allow it to use new buoys that last longer and have a broader search range.
It also carries an acoustic sensor and a hydrocarbon sensor designed to pick up fuel vapor from subs. The P-8A's cabin can have up to seven operator consoles, and onboard computers compile data for those operators and then distribute it to friendly forces.
The P-8A carries its own armaments, including Harpoon antiship missiles, depth charges, MK-54 torpedoes, and naval mines. It can also deploy defensive countermeasures, including a laser and metallic chaff to confuse incoming missiles.
A dry-bay fire system uses sensors to detect fires on board and extinguish them, a P-8A pilot told The War Zone in early 2017.
"The P-8 is the best ASW localize/track platform in the fleet, one of the best maritime [Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance] assets in the world, with the ability to identify and track hundreds of contacts, and complete the kill chain for both surface and subsurface contacts if necessary," the pilot said.
140408-n-vd564-035.jpg
US Navy aircrew members look out the windows of a P-8A Poseidon while flying over the Indian Ocean in support of efforts to locate Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, April 8, 2014.US Navy/Chief Mass Communication Specialist Keith DeVinney
-------------------
In 2016, the UK announced it would buy nine P-8As. In 2017, Norway announced it was buying five.
-------------------
India made its first purchase of the P-8I Neptune variant in 2009, buying eight that deployed in 2013. New Delhi bought four additional planes in 2016, and India's navy chief said in January that the service was looking to buy more.
In early 2014, Australia agreed to buy eight P-8As for $3.6 billion. They are expected to arrive by 2021, and Canberra has the option to buy four more.
2559687.jpg
Malaysian Chief of Defense Forces Gen. Zulkifeli Mohd Zin watches crew members demonstrate advanced features of a P-8A Poseidon, April 21, 2016.US Navy/Mass Comm. Specialist 1st Class Jay M. Chu
us-plans-more-asia-pacific-drills-to-counter-china-reclamation-2015-8.jpg
A Navy crewman on a P-8A Poseidon views a computer screen purportedly showing Chinese construction on the reclaimed land of Fiery Cross Reef in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, May 21, 2015.Thomson Reuters
-------------------
In June 2017, defense ministers from France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, and Turkey agreed to cooperate on "multinational maritime multimission aircraft capabilities." The US Navy has increased its antisubmarine activities in Europe, leading with the P-8A.
The US's 2018 defense budget included $14 million to refurbish hangers at Naval Air Station Keflavik in Iceland, where antisubmarine forces hunted German U-boats during World War II and patrols scoured northern latitudes during the Cold War.
The US Navy decided to leave Keflavik in 2006, but recent modifications would allow P-8As to be stationed there, though the Navy has said it doesn't currently plan to reestablish a permanent presence.
--------------------
The source from which the excerpts above were taken is
Business Insider UK open this link to read the very informative article in full; and also view more of the excellent images associated with the article.
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
)
