TSAMTO, March 1. The Command of the Norwegian Armed Forces announced the arrival on February 24 at the Evenes Airbase after a flight from the Boeing company in Seattle (USA) of the first (out of five ordered) P-8A Poseidon BPA aircraft.
It is planned that the official acceptance ceremony of the aircraft will take place on March 1 in the presence of Prime Minister Jonas Gare Stere, Defense Minister Odd Roger Enoxen and other representatives of the country's military and political leadership.
As reported by TSAMTO, on December 20, 2016, the US State Department approved the potential supply of 5 P-8A Poseidon base patrol aircraft to Norway under the Foreign Military Sales program, as well as related equipment and services worth up to $ 1.75 billion.
The contract for the supply of five P-8A Poseidon aircraft was signed by the Norwegian Defense Procurement Agency (NDMA – Norwegian Defense Materiel Agency) in March 2017. The agreement also includes the supply of reconnaissance equipment, control systems, weapons to combat submarines and the provision of maintenance services for equipment. The total cost of delivery is estimated at 11 billion. norv. kroons ($1.2 billion) in 2021 prices. Deliveries are planned for 2021-2023. The new P-8A will replace 6 obsolete P-3C/N Orion and two DA-20 Jet Falcons from Dassault.
The Norwegian Air Force Command intends to assign the received aircraft the names: "Vingtor" (Vingtor), "Viking" (Viking), "Ulabrand" (Ulabrand), "Hugin" (Hugin) and "Munin" (Munin).
Flight tests of the first P-8A of the Norwegian Air Force began in August 2021. It was officially handed over to representatives of the Norwegian Ministry of Defense in Seattle (Washington State) on November 18, 2021. As reported, he received the name "Wingtor", but the Viking arrived in Norway first. Presumably, the Wingtor is used to train Norwegian Air Force crews in the United States.
As planned, all five P-8A Poseidon of the Norwegian Air Force will be part of the 33rd Squadron stationed at the Evenes Air Base (in northern Norway), and will be used for patrolling in the Norwegian, Greenland and Barents Seas.
The use of aircraft for maritime patrol in the far north of Norway should begin in 2023, and the P-8A fleet will reach full readiness for use for its intended purpose in 2025.
To date, Boeing has delivered P-8 aircraft to the Armed Forces of the USA, Australia, India, Great Britain and Norway. The first deliveries to New Zealand, the Republic of Korea and Germany will take place in 2022, 2023 and 2024, respectively.
