God of the sea

11 Squadron introduces the P-8A Poseidon into RAAF service

The Royal Australian Air Force’s maritime surveillance capabilities are undergoing generational change with the introduction into service of Boeing’s P-8A Poseidon.

Named for the Greek god of the sea, and based on Boeing’s ubiquitous 737 commercial airliner, the P-8A is replacing the much-loved and much-upgraded AP-3C Orion as the RAAF’s primary maritime surveillance asset. The first four of an eventual planned fleet of 15 P-8As are now in service with the RAAF’s 11 Squadron, based at RAAF Base Edinburgh, which is on a path towards achieving initial operating capability (IOC) with the aircraft in early 2018.