Federal Republic of Germany purchases five P-8A Poseidon

Federal Minister of Defence Kramp-Karrenbauer spoke with U.S. Secretary of Defense Austin on Wednesday, 30 June 2021, and was happy to announce that the Bundeswehr’s purchase of five P-8A Poseidon Maritime Patrol Aircraft could be initiated. Secretary Austin welcomed this decision.

Following the German Budget Committee’s approval of the purchase last week, the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) procedure will now be initiated and a contract will be signed.

This acquisition totalling €1.1 billion is urgently necessary for the seamless maintenance of long-range maritime reconnaissance and long-range airborne antisubmarine warfare capabilities.
In addition to five aircraft, the contract includes the corresponding mission and communication equipment, an initial supply of spare parts including accessories, ground checkout equipment and special tools, a mission support system as well as technical and logistic support.

Background

After the conclusion of modernisation activities on the P-3C Orion in June 2020, the Bundeswehr faced an unacceptable capability gap.

For this reason, the Bundeswehr conducted a market survey that included all platforms available on the market.

This analysis took into account the satisfaction of operational requirements as well as all implications for the German-French cooperation project Maritime Airborne Warfare System (MAWS).

The selection of the P-8A Poseidon introduces a robust interim solution.

After the exit from the P-3C Orion project, the P-8A aircraft will facilitate the seamless maintenance of a rapid, long-range airborne antisubmarine warfare role and long-range maritime reconnaissance capabilities in the period from 2025 to 2035. The German-French cooperation project Maritime Airborne Warfare System (MAWS) will subsequently ensure this capability.