page_title: Boeing P-8 Poseidon
section_title: Design
hierarchical_section_title: Boeing P-8 Poseidon / Design
caption_attribution_description: English: U.S. Navy crew members on board a Boeing P-8A Poseidon assigned to Patrol Squadron (VP) 16 man their workstations while assisting in search and rescue operations for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. VP-16 was deployed in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility.
context_page_description: The Boeing P-8 Poseidon is a military aircraft developed and produced by Boeing Defense, Space & Security, modified from the 737-800ERX. It was developed for the United States Navy.
  The P-8 is being operated in the anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, and shipping interdiction roles. It is armed with torpedoes, Harpoon anti-ship missiles and other weapons, and is able to drop and monitor sonobuoys, as well as operate in conjunction with other assets, including the Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton maritime surveillance unmanned aerial vehicle.
  The P-8 is operated by the United States Navy, the Indian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force and the UK's Royal Air Force. It has also been ordered by the Royal Norwegian Air Force, the Royal New Zealand Air Force, and the Republic of Korea Navy.
context_section_description: The P-8 is a militarized version of the 737-800ERX, a 737-800 with 737-900-based wings. The fuselage is similar to, but longer than, the 737-700-based C-40 Clipper transport aircraft in service with the USN. The P-8 has a strengthened fuselage for low-altitude operations and raked wingtips similar to those fitted to the Boeing 767-400ER, instead of the blended winglets available on 737NG variants. In order to power additional onboard electronics, the P-8 has a 180kVA electric generator on each engine, replacing the 90kVA generator of civilian 737s; this required the redesigning of the nacelles and their wing mountings. The P-8 has a smoother flight experience, subjecting crews to less turbulence and fumes than the preceding P-3, allowing them to concentrate better on missions.
  The P-8 features the Raytheon APY-10 multi-mission surface search radar; the P-8I features an international version of the APY-10. Unlike the preceding P-3, the P-8 lacks a magnetic anomaly detector (MAD) due to its higher operational altitude; its acoustic sensor system is reportedly more effective at acoustic tracking and thus lacking a MAD will not impede its detection capabilities; India's P-8I is equipped with a MAD per the contract request. Various sensor data are combined via data fusion software to track targets. Following the cancellation of Lockheed Martin's Aerial Common Sensor project, Boeing proposed a signals intelligence variant of the P-8 for the USN's requirement. During the P-8A Increment 2 upgrade in 2016, the APS-149 Littoral Surveillance Radar System (LSRS) will be replaced by the Advanced Airborne Sensor radar.
  The five operator stations (two naval flight officers plus three enlisted Aviation Warfare Operators/naval aircrewman) are mounted in a sideways row, along the port side of the cabin. None of the crew stations have windows; a single observer window is located on each side of the forward cabin. A short bomb bay for torpedoes and other stores opens behind the wing. The P-8 is to be equipped with the High Altitude Anti-Submarine Warfare Weapon Capability (HAAWC) Air Launch Accessory (ALA), turning a Mark 54 torpedo into a glide bomb for deploying from up to 30,000 ft (9,100 m).
  In U.S. service, the P-8A is complemented by the MQ-4C Triton unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) which provides continuous surveillance. In January 2015, BAE Systems was awarded a contract for the USN's High Altitude ASW (HAASW) Unmanned Targeting Air System (UTAS) program to develop a sub-hunting UAV equipped with a MAD for launching from the P-8.
  The P-8 cannot use the hose-and-drogue in-flight refueling method, instead featuring a flying boom receptacle on the upper-forward fuselage, making it, like the USN's E-6 Mercury TACAMO aircraft, reliant on U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker, KC-10 Extender and KC-46 Pegasus aircraft for in-flight refueling. In April 2017, the USAF 459th Air Refueling Wing worked with the Naval Air Systems Command to certify operationally the P-8 for in-flight refueling. For extended endurance, six additional fuel tanks from Marshall Aerospace are housed in the forward and rear cargo compartments.
caption: Crew at work stations inside a P-8
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