[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] Korean Navy Patrol Aircraft Production Site Seen from US Mainland

The Navy decided in 2018 to introduce six maritime patrol aircraft capable of tracking North Korean submarines. The model is Boeing's P-8A Poseidon. Six units are scheduled to be sequentially introduced domestically starting from March next year. To operate the P-8A, our military established a maritime patrol aircraft battalion (the 617th Flight Squadron of the 61st Maritime Patrol Aircraft Squadron) under the Navy's 6th Air Wing in October 2021.

The P-8 'Poseidon' is an anti-submarine patrol aircraft developed by Boeing in 2009 based on the B737-800 passenger plane, nicknamed the 'submarine hunter' or 'submarine killer.' Once all six P-8As are introduced, the total number of maritime patrol aircraft operated by our Navy will increase to 22, including the existing P-3C (8 units) and P-3CK (8 units).

At Boeing's Seattle Lantern factory, modification work on the fuselage of the 737 model, which is the P-8, was underway. (Photo by Ministry of National Defense Press Corps)

On the 28th of last month, Boeing revealed the Boeing Military Delivery Center in Seattle to the Ministry of National Defense press corps. The 4th P-8A Poseidon was on standby there. This is the first time the 4th unit has been spotted. Boeing plans to hand over the 4th unit to the U.S. Navy soon, following the first three units.

A Boeing official recently stated, "We produced four units this year and plan to complete the remaining two units next year and deliver them to the U.S. Navy." According to the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) process, the U.S. Navy is expected to receive these six units from Boeing, conduct internal review procedures, and then deliver them to the Republic of Korea Navy. The delivery timing is currently under review by the U.S. Navy.

Boeing is also actively producing the 5th and 6th units. At Boeing's Seattle Renton plant, modification work on the fuselage of the 737 model, which the P-8 is based on, is underway.

A Boeing representative said, "The fuselage modification process at the Renton plant, which usually took 59 days, has now extended to about 75 days due to the global supply chain crisis. However, this is not a problem unique to Boeing but a common situation across the industry, and work is progressing without issues." The 737 process involves three main stages: fuselage manufacturing at the Wichita plant, fuselage modification at the Renton plant, and installation of weapons and classified equipment at the Tukwila plant.

Boeing Seattle Plant Actively Producing Poseidon Units 5 and 6

Boeing plans to complete production of all six units contracted with Korea by next year (2024), about six years after the 2018 contract. However, a Boeing official said, "The exact delivery timing depends entirely on discussions between the U.S. Navy and the Republic of Korea Navy, so we cannot confirm the precise delivery date."

The P-8A is a multi-mission patrol aircraft capable of anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance missions, and search and rescue operations. The P-8 can perform missions at high altitudes (up to 41,000 feet) and fast speeds (490 knots). Its short transit time increases the probability of detection during submarine and surface ship searches and survivor search and rescue operations. Boeing stated that the P-8A is designed for low-altitude missions and has already proven its capability to support humanitarian missions and search and rescue activities.

The P-8A operated by the U.S. Navy is equipped with various surveillance and reconnaissance equipment, including the long-range X-band radar AN/APY-10 capable of detecting maritime targets up to 470 km away, and the digital electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensor L-2 Wescam MX-20HD, which can capture and detect targets at tens of kilometers with high resolution. It also carries various electronic warfare equipment. Additionally, the P-8A can carry up to 129 sonobuoys (acoustic detection buoys) to detect underwater submarine movements and is armed primarily with air-to-surface missiles 'Harpoon' and torpedoes.

The P-8 is currently operated or contracted by eight countries with over 183 units. It is a proven system with over 500,000 hours of accident-free flight worldwide. Derivative models of the P-8 include the P-8I and P-8A. The P-8I is operated by the Indian Navy. The P-8A Poseidon is operated by the U.S. Navy, Royal Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force, Royal Norwegian Air Force, and Royal New Zealand Air Force. The Republic of Korea Navy and the German Navy are among the militaries that have adopted the P-8.