Military Procurement International Vol. 19, No. 7, April 1, 2009
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9, Switzerland. It is unlawful to reproduce any of this publication without written permission from the publisher.
AUSTRALIA
To sign up for Increment 2, Spiral 1 P-8A partnership
By June this year, Australia is expected to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) under which it will join the Increment 2, Spiral 1 development phase of the Boeing P-8A Poseidon Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft (MMA) program as a co-operative partner.
The Increment 2, Spiral 1 phase is intended to add new capabilities to the US Navy’s baseline configuration P-8A. The new capabilities will include: an integrated broadcast system for intelligence data; improved acoustic sensor processing; an automatic information system for ship identification; extended echo-ranging with multi-static capabilities; and upgrades to the ground-based tactical support centre.
The Royal Australian Air Force plans to start phasing out its 19 current AP-3C Orion Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPAs) in 2015, replacing them with about 12 of the Increment 2, Spiral 1 P-3A Poseidons.