FLUG REVUE September 2006: P-3 Orion for the Marineflieger

September 2006

P-3C ORION OPS START AT NORDHOLZ

By Stefan Petersen

As of the end of June all eight P-3Cs bound for the German Fleet Air Arm had arrived in Germany – five of them in Nordholz, the home base of Naval Air Wing 3 (MFG 3), the other three currently undergoing repairs and routine inspections at EADS Manching, which has been tasked with the provision of system support. Their previous home base of Valkenburg, Holland was closed on 1 July.

Lockheed P-3C Orion

Flying operations at MFG 3 commenced following receipt of German airworthiness certification on 11 July and initially is aimed primarily at conversion training of the next two crews. “Another important point,” according to Commander Björn Malmus, Squadron Leader of 1 Squadron, who himself flies as Tactical Coordinator (TACCO), “is to develop our own operational principles. That was not possible in Holland as the aircraft arrived too late from the CUP [Capability Upkeep Programme] upgrade. Although we can operate with some individual aircraft, we now need to develop a crew concept that takes account of all the operational possibilities of the P-3C.

“We want to be sufficiently prepared by next summer so that we can deploy one P-3C and one to two crews to Djibouti as part of operation Enduring Freedom. We aim to attain full mission capability by 2009.”

The purchase of the P-3C's will safeguard the development and long-term retention of MPA capabilities within the Bundeswehr – the aircraft will probably remain in service until at least 2025. The last Atlantic in MPA configuration is to be retired by 31 December, although MFG 3's three SIGINT Atlantics will continue to fly until the end of the decade.

The opportunity to take over the Dutch aircraft was a stroke of luck for the German Navy, as the 40-year-old Breguet Br.1150 Atlantic had reached the end of its service life. Compared with the Atlantic, the equipment of the Orions, which have just been upgraded in the USA, is a “quantum leap” according to Commander Malmus. “The most important point is the central computer which permits full integration of all the sensors and at the same time delivers a complete situation picture to every member of the crew at every workstation.” The modern APS-137(V)5 radar with synthetic aperture and imaging capability (SAR/ISAR) also picks up land targets and makes it possible to distinguish ships a long way away, while the AN/AQA-78B acoustics processor is “the most advanced system on the market” according to Malmus. “As far as searching for submarines and anti-submarine warfare are concerned, we are now in an excellent position.” The newly developed AN/ALR-95V2 ESM system has already been ordered and will be installed later on. “We also have satellite communication and the possibility of transferring files and images in real time by data link.”

At present the only planned armaments are the Navy's standard Mk.46 Mod 2 torpedoes. “Integration of the MU-90 successor torpedo will only commence in the next two years.” But despite this, according to Malmus the P-3C's already have the capability to carry a range of armaments. “Preinstallations such as for the Harpoon missile are already available.” This flexibility will be important for the future operating spectrum. “It will extend far beyond the tasks of an MPA. It will be possible to deploy the German Orions not just at sea but also over land.”

This of course will require extensive crew training. “In August 2004 the first six flight engineers went to Valkenburg for advance training,” says Malmus, who two months later assumed command of the naval aviation system training squadron which was set up there. About 150 personnel from Nordholz have undergone training in the Netherlands, including four crews – two instructor crews and two mission crews. “Moreover,” says Malmus, “48 Dutch personnel – eleven onboard personnel and the rest engineers – will support Orion flying operations in Nordholz for another year.”

From page 56 of FLUG REVUE 9/2006

Last updated 15 August 2006

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