P-8 just got better

It looks like the P-8 Poseidon got a little more capable with the addition of the Littoral Surveillance Radar System. A system born in the black world. With this radar it rivals the E-8 Joint STARS in finding bad guys hiding in the border between the sea and land.

Foxtrot Alpha

Radar info...



Cool promo video for the P-8 (Has movie guy voice in it)

One can only hope, as I've been reading reviews of the P-8 that are less than golden. I hope upgrades help, but then its just another of the many cases where defense contractors promise the moon, deliver far less, then suck us in for upgrades at even higher cost than the initial outrageous cost overruns.

reply to post by jaxnmarko


The Poseidon is right on track development wise. It was planned that they would have to upgrade in place, as that would actually be cheaper and allow the aircraft to enter service sooner.

reply to post by Sammamishman


I have an older thread on the radar that I'll try to find when I can get on the computer later today.

reply to post by Sammamishman


HAHAHAHAHAHA!

Is that SERIOUSLY an industry promotional video?

What the hell is wrong with the people who make these things, let alone the people who actually respond to these promos?

It's a serious bit of military equipment, not the latest GI Joe movie! What is the point in the music and the announcer? What a total waste of resources!

reply to post by TrueBrit


No, that is a "for the public" commercial. You really think Joe Public is going to sit through something that DOESN'T look like GI Joe?

reply to post by TrueBrit


I think it is something more for the media and the brass walking by at trade shows. They use it to catch the attention of potential customers and suck them into talk real details. It's like the balloons and dudes in costumes waving signs for car dealerships, it may real them in for some but not for others.

reply to post by Zaphod58


The Joe public where exactly? A ten year old might have trouble maintaining focus for more than ten seconds without a rousing tune, and the occasional explosion, but come on! You cannot be telling me that the average American could not sit through a proper, informative and useful video about this aircraft! That is outrageous!

reply to post by TrueBrit


Most people have very little interest in sitting through a video about the military. Almost everyone I talk to goes glassy eyed when I start talking about something related. So the video is geared to keep attention.

reply to post by Sammamishman


Here is my thread from 2012 that talks about them adding this to the P-8. It has some information on the radar, as well as pictures of it mounted on several P-3s.

Zaphod58
reply to post by Sammamishman

 

I have an older thread on the radar that I'll try to find when I can get on the computer later today.

Our Squadron was the first to get the new ISAR radar back in the 1990's when it was new and cool.

reply to post by Zaphod58


Nice, it looks like they are right on schedule with testing to be complete by 2016 if these have just shown up on the P8's now. Do you think the P8's fitted with these will replace the E-8's?

reply to post by Sammamishman


I think it's going to force them to either go with something similar to the E-10 (which this was originally intended for), or upgrade the E-8 again. The Air Force doesn't like relying on the Navy for "their" missions.

reply to post by Zaphod58

What can I say, Zaphod, I'm just repeating what I read. As I said, I do have hope.

Naval Air: The P-8 Stumbles
Next Article → INDIA-PAKISTAN: Distressed Taliban Now Willing To Negotiate

February 5, 2014: In late 2013 the U.S. P-8A Poseidon anti-submarine and maritime patrol aircraft entered service, four years after its first flight in 2009. The bad news is the manufacturer is confronted with complaints that the new electronics developed for the P-8A are not working well alone or with each other. The surface search radar and surveillance turret (a high end vidcam with powerful zoom) were particularly troubled, with many of their automatic and cooperative features not working properly. These problems were noted more than a year before the P-8A entered service. There are now 16 P-8s flying, six of them prototypes. Production continues, for India as well as the U.S. One was delivered to India in May 2013 and the Indians are quite upset over the sensor problems.

reply to post by jaxnmarko


Oh, I don't deny that they are having problems. The sensor integration is much tighter than with the P-3. But they're pretty close to on schedule for development of the sensors, and integrating new sensors, such as this new radar. The basic surveillance mission is fully operational, with the new wide area search sensor suite coming online within a year or so.

A lot of these new aircraft are going to have sensor problems, because the sensors are reaching the point where they are doing things that even 10 years ago nobody dreamed they could do.