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U.S. aircraft often fly to the farthest reaches of the globe. To sustain this, the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps created small, specialized teams that move mountains to make that flight possible. One of those teams, comprised of Sailors from Navy Cargo Handling Battalion (NCHB) 1 and Marines from Marine Wing Support Squadron (MWSS) 271, trained to support, refuel, rearm…
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A mid-air ‘top up’ has kept United States Navy (USN) P-8A Poseidon crews on mission while training in Australia. In March, a series of air-to-air refueling missions were flown between a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) KC-30A Multi-Role Tanker Transport and the visiting USN P-8A over western New South Wales and Victoria. Connected in close formation at more than 800…
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A U.S. Navy P-8A from Patrol Squadron 47 (VP-47) and one KC-30A from Royal Australian Air Force No. 33 Squadron (RAAF 33) conducted the first ever operational Air-To-Air Refueling (AAR) between a U.S. Navy P-8A and a RAAF KC-30A on March 20. Earlier in the month, the Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance aircraft (MPRA) with VP-47, traveled to Edinburgh to support…
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Boeing P-8A team members and Spirit AeroSystems employees have laid the keel beam for New Zealand’s first P-8A. This process, also called ‘keeling,’ was done at the Spirit AeroSystems facility where all Boeing 737 fuselages, nacelles and pylons are designed and built. Laying the keel is an important production milestone during the build of any ship or aircraft and represents…
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This year’s Diamond series kicked off with the successful completion of the first exercise, Diamond Seas 2022 in February. The Diamond series is part of the six-month air warfare instructors course (AWIC) focused on producing expert and approachable air warfare instructors capable of harnessing the combat potential of integrated air, space and cyber capabilities in support of the joint force.…
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The UK’s anti-submarine forces took their skills to the next level during the largest workout in the Mediterranean. For the first time two RAF Poseidon Maritime Patrol Aircraft from CXX Squadron based at RAF Lossiemouth joined the Royal Navy for NATO’s Dynamic Manta, two weeks of cutting-edge tech and training involving seven Allied nations in the vanguard of underwater warfare.…
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U.S Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) and a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft (MPRA), from Patrol Squadron (VP) 47, joined with ships, aircraft and personnel from India and numerous other navies to begin Exercise Milan 2022, in the Bay of Bengal, Feb. 25. This year marks the first time U.S. has participated in Exercise…
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Boeing delivered the 12th P-8I maritime patrol aircraft to India, on February 19. This is the fourth of four additional aircraft delivered under the options contract signed by the Ministry of Defence in 2016. “Customer centricity, commitment to the modernization and mission-readiness of India’s defence forces are key values to our partnership with India,” said Surendra Ahuja, managing director, Boeing…
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The Chinese PLA naval vessel maintained safe, normative and professional operations all along in the whole process when encountering the aircraft attached to the Australian Defence Force (ADF), which conforms to the International Law and related international practices, said Spokesperson Senior Colonel Tan Kefei of the Chinese Ministry of National Defense (MND) on Monday. The spokesperson made the remarks in…
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Defence can confirm that on 17 February 2022, a P-8A Poseidon detected a laser illuminating the aircraft while in flight over Australia’s northern approaches. The laser was detected as emanating from a People’s Liberation Army – Navy (PLA-N) vessel. Illumination of the aircraft by the Chinese vessel is a serious safety incident. Acts like this have the potential to endanger…
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