By Marina Malenic
SEATTLE—Boeing [BA] is gearing up to start production of six low-rate initial production (LRIP) P-8A Poseidon maritime surveillance planes, officials here said following the award last week of a $1.6 billion Navy contract.
James Detwiler, Boeing’s business development manager for the project, told Defense Daily that the aircraft are expected to come off the line within three to four months after assembly begins on the 737-based airplanes. That process will accelerate and only take “about a month or so” once Boeing reaches full-rate production, he said during a Jan. 20 interview at the company’s P-8 factory outside Seattle.
“We’re looking to ultimately build 24 aircraft per year, but that number can very easily be increased,” Detwiler added.
The LRIP-1 contract–which includes spare parts, logistics and training devices–is for the first of 117 P-8As that will replace the Navy’s legacy fleet of Lockheed Martin [LMT] P-3 Orion aircraft.
Boeing is currently finishing up work on six flight and ground test aircraft under a $3.9 System Development and Demonstration (SDD) contract awarded in 2004. Three of those planes are in flight test at NAS Patuxent River, Md. The fourth is having military systems installed, with a fifth in line for the same installations. A final aircraft–a late addition to the SDD contract–is under assembly, according to Boeing officials here.
Detwiler said Boeing completed initial ground tests on the static test article last month. He also said that the fatigue test airframe is expected to receive a two-lifetime fatigue test and that there is “some talk of doing three,” though a third year as yet unfunded.
“Thanks to that testing, the Navy will know everything about this aircraft before it is deployed,” said Detwiler.
Boeing is also in process of assembling P-8Is for the Indian Navy on the same production line. India is the first international customer for the P-8, having signed a contract for eight aircraft in 2009. Detwiler said talks with the Australian Navy for potential replacement of their P-3s are ongoing.
The U.S. Navy plans to deploy its first squadron of six P-8As in 2013, fulfilling its initial operational capability goal. In 2016, new technologies would be added to the next batch of aircraft, while the first squadron would receive retrofits, according to Detwiler. He said most upgrades are expected to be software-related.
The total U.S. Navy work is worth $15 billion if all 117 production-model airplanes are purchased. Spares, maintenance and potential foreign sales could more than double that price tag, according to industry observers.
Boeing’s P-8 industry team includes Northrop Grumman [NOC], Raytheon [RTN], Spirit AeroSystems [SPR], BAE Systems and GE Aviation.