Posted on 12/16/2010 9:07:50 PM PST by ErnstStavroBlofeld
Singapore has shown an interest in possibly acquiring several of the US Navy's surplus P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft, according to the type's former manufacturer, Lockheed Martin.
"They have issued a letter of request to look at P-3s," says Mark Jarvis, Lockheed's director, design and production for P-3 programmes. Singapore's interest could be for around four or five aircraft, he believes, with these to perhaps draw on the configuration of the 12 secondhand Orions due to be delivered to Taiwan from 2012.
Singapore - which currently operates five Fokker 50 maritime patrol aircraft - could potentially acquire surplus Orions as the US Navy begins to transition to its replacement, the Boeing 737-based P-8A Poseidon. Jarvis says the service could fly some of its aircraft to Lockheed's Greenville site in South Carolina to undergo overhaul and modernisation prior to their future delivery to third parties
(Excerpt) Read more at flightglobal.com ...
I’d love one.
I thought those old birds have been beat to hell with low level work. Structural issues, I read about some time back. Fine aircraft and a great ASW platform, but metal can only take so much abuse.
Singapore wants proven ASW capabilities to counter-balance the two Scorpene submarines Malaysia recently purchased.
Hmmm..... Me thinks the Singaporeans have an eye on China. And they may be a tad worried about Chinese subs. They need
to be looking at some other stuff also. Some stuff that can go mucho faster than a P-3.
I don’t like the P-3’s so much. If they got a few super Connies, I might apply to work there.
I’m an old P-3 sailor and I’m not real comfortable with this.
Why?
Several reasons. One is sentimentality. But, well beyond that is the airworthiness of the aircraft. The P-3 is over 50 years old and has had the crap beaten out of them. And, the Chinese don’t need to force anymore P-3s to land in China.
As things stand today, there are so few P-3s still on active duty that they have all been assigned to the Fleet Air Wings, not the sqaudrons. The replacement P-8 is too expensive for the Navy to be able to purchase enough to replace their geriatric P-3s. I dearly love the P-3 and have very fond memories of them but, let’s be honest, they have earned their rest and should be retired with the dignity they earned.
You have some very good points
ping
Earned their rest? They are machines. If they have residual
value to our friends in Sg, better that they be used to tie
up and observe Chinese while we sneak in unnoticed.
Get those planes reworked and sold!
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Taiwan should be snapping these up like turtle nuts.
The P-3 may be a machine, but it is a highly developed machine that is regularly subjected to physical stresses of nature that ultimately has deleterious effects on the metal structure and skin of the aircraft. In addition, let’s recall the history of the P-3 - it is the military version of the Lockheed Electra which, in the late 50s and early 60s, became notorious for pulling their wings off (while in flight) because the wing root was underdesigned for the engines.
The P-3 and the C-130 are the same vintage aircraft and share many design similarities. As I said, I dearly love this aircraft, but it is pretty old. Would you want to put a Model-T on the road and expect it to perform at today’s levels.
It’s an old aircraft and it should be retired before its age causes more deaths.
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