P-8I- the Indian Navy’s frontline multi-mission aircraft

P-8I- the Indian Navy’s frontline multi-mission aircraft

TOPIC: Science & Tech

Context- Aviation and defence colossus Boeing delivered India’s 12th maritime surveillance and anti-submarine warfare P-8I aircraft on February 24.

Concept-

About P-8I Aircraft:

• It is a long-range Maritime Reconnaissance and Anti-Submarine Warfare
• It is an Indian variant of the P-8A Poseidon aircraft that Boeing company developed as a replacement for the US Navy’s ageing P-3 fleet.
• The aircraft comes with one of the most advanced weapon systems in the world, and has a life of around 25 years, or 25,000 hours in the “harshest maritime flight regimes, including extended operations in icing environments”.
• The P-8I can fly as high as 41,000 feet, and has a short transit time, which reduces the size of the “Area of Probability when searching for submarines, surface vessels or search and rescue survivors”.
• It is also used for low altitude, and humanitarian, and search and rescue missions.
• The Indian Navy became the first international customer for the P-8 aircraft in 2009.
• The P-8Is will come installed with encrypted communication systems since India has now signed the foundational agreement Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA) with the US.
• The first eight of these aircraft are stationed at INS Rajali in Arakkonam, Tamil Nadu, on the eastern coast. The batch of the additional four are part of another squadron at INS Hansa in Goa, named Indian Naval Air Squadron 316.