The first of five P-8A Poseidons bound for Norway made its maiden flight on Monday.
The plane took off at 10:03 a.m. PT and flew for 2 hours 24 minutes, reaching a maximum altitude of 41,000 feet on the flight from Renton Municipal Airport to Boeing Field in Seattle.
The first flight heralds the next stage in completing the P-8A. The mission’s systems will be installed at Boeing Field and further testing will be conducted before delivery to the Norwegian Defense Materiel Agency (NDMA) later this year.
Five P-8As will replace Norway’s current fleet of six P-3 Orions and three DA-20 Jet Falcons. The Royal Norwegian Air Force currently operates P-3 aircraft from Andoya Airfield. With the introduction of the P-8, flight operations will be moved to the new facilities at Evenes Airport.
To date, Boeing has delivered 136 P-8s to the US Navy, Royal Australian Air Force, Indian Navy and RAF. Norway is one of eight countries that have selected the P-8A as their maritime patrol aircraft, along with the United States, India, Australia, Great Britain, Korea, New Zealand and Germany.
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