Lockheed to offer UK specific Sea Hercules to MOD

Lockheed is planning to offer the UK SC-130J aircraft for maritime patrol, based on existing C-130Js already in the UK. Lockheed would take either the short fuselage C-130Js, or the extended fuselage aircraft that the RAF already owns, raise the front landing gear, install the same mission system in the EH101 Merlin Mk.2 helicopters.

The raised landing gear would allow the carriage of torpedoes. The outer wing, which is already capable of carrying external fuel tanks, would have anitship missiles fitted, while the aft portion of the cargo hold would have a rotary sonoboy launcher installed. The work could also be done in the UK, at existing Hercules facilities, while performing a SLEP on the aircraft at the same time.

RNAS YEOVILTON, U.K. — Lockheed Martin is to offer a U.K-specific variant of its SC-130J Sea Hercules to Britain, as the U.K. looks to re-generate a maritime patrol capability.

The company says it could convert the U.K. Royal Air Force’s existing fleet of C-130J airlifters into SC-130Js, reducing procurement costs and technical risks, company officials told Aviation Week on the eve of the RNAS Yeovilton Air Day.

The company plans to formally announce its plans in the coming weeks.

aviationweek.com...

a reply to: Zaphod58

I wonder if they could put a cable towed MAD system on it?
Boeing is trying to get them to buy the P-8 and Japan is trying to get them to buy their P-1.

Low and Slow!

I hope they learned from Grimrod and go with a new aircraft, specifically the P-8 but the P-1 looks good too!

Just read about this is response to the lack of MAD:

High Altitude ASW (HAASW) Unmanned Targeting Air System (UTAS) program

HAASW

Do we know if this is recoverable or are MAD fairly COTS tech so a controlled explostion wouldnt matter if it got into enemy habnds? I suppose the brains are in the software decoder in the P-8 high above?