The first Boeing P-8I Neptune maritime multimission aircraft for the Indian Navy (IN) made its maiden flight from the company's Renton facility near Seattle on 28 September.
Boeing said the two-and-a-half-hour flight saw its test pilots undertake airborne systems checks including engine accelerations and decelerations and autopilot flight modes. During the sortie the aircraft - serial
number IN 320, but flying on US serial number N393DS - reached an altitude of 41,000 ft. This first flight will be followed over the coming weeks by mission systems installation and checkout work on the aircraft at a company facility near Boeing Field, Seattle, a statement noted.
The P-8I, which is based on the P-8A Poseidon, differs from the US Navy variant aircraft in that it will be equipped with an aft-facing radar (to operate independently of the forward-facing Raytheon AN/APY-10 surface search sensor) providing full-hemisphere coverage and an aerial target tracking capability. A magnetic anomaly detection (MAD) system will also be fitted and the aircraft will be compatible with the use of depth charges.
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