SeaQueen
Posts: 1451
Joined: 4/14/2007 From: Washington D.C. Status: offline
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Not a stupid question at all. The answer is: use sonobuoys, radar, visual and EO/IR sensors. One of the down sides to having a jet as an MPA like the P-8 is that its engines are most efficient at high altitude. Therefore, in order to maximize their range and endurance (a critical feature for an MPA), it is desirable in a jet MPA to remain at high altitude. In order to do that, the US Navy decided to develop the High Altitude ASW Weapon Capability (HAAWC) which is in development. The idea behind it is to have a strap-on kit for a torpedo that turns it into a GPS guided glide bomb. That way, you don't have to come down low to drop the torpedo, the glide bomb just flies to the desired location and drops the torpedo there for you while you remain at high altitude, monitoring your station. http://navaltoday.com/2013/04/12/boeing-secures-haawc-contract-from-us-navy/ Besides maximizing range and endurance, remaining at high altitude enables one to theoretically monitor more sonobuoys simultaneously because you have a longer radio line of sight. Additionally, it makes one's radar horizon longer, increasing the range at which one could theoretically detect periscopes. One's visual and EO/IR line of sight is also longer. MAD requires one to come down to low altitude, because the sensor's range is typically very short. Given the advantages of staying high, and the lack of a necessity to do it with the upcoming HAAWC, the US Navy decided that MAD sensor's usefulness would be limited and did not justify it's inclusion on the new P-8A. There are those who disagree, though. The P-8I, the version for Indian export, reflects that dissent and does have a MAD detector. quote:
I was just looking at the new P8 Poseidon and noticed that it doesn't come with a magnetic anomaly detector. Maybe a stupid question but without that how are you going to find nuclear submarines with this plane?
< Message edited by SeaQueen -- 9/11/2015 5:41:02 PM >
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