The U.S Navy will be configuring its fleet of P-8 Poseidon to counter the growing threat
of Chinese warships.The plan is to arm the P-8s with Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM).
This is a significant move as the premier submarine hunting platform will be utilized
more actively for Anti Surface Warfare.
As per some reports, the integration of P-8s with LRASM & operational deployment is
estimated to be completed by the end of 2026.
In this video Defense Updates analyzes why U.S Navy arming P-8 Poseidon with Long-Range
Anti-Ship Missile will be major deterrence against Chinese Navy ?Let’s get into the
details.
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China’s has seen a very significant economic progress in the past two decades.This has
enabled it to pour huge amount of resources to it military and is developing very capable
warships.For example, China is deploying Type 055 class of guided missile destroyer.The
spec sheet of Type 055 is impressive and will certainly give a big boost to Chinese naval
capabilities.Most analysts consider the Type 0 55 to be a worthy competitor to any surface
combatant operating in the world including the Arleigh Burke class warship.China plans
to build 8 of these and the first one named ‘Nanchang' is currently in active service.Chinese
fleet of ever expanding surface combatants is a genuine threat in the the Pacific theater.U.S
Navy’s surface fleet is armed with relatively less potent Anti Ship missiles which makes
the scenario even more alarming.The main missile for anti ship role aboard Arleigh burke class
destroyers & Ticonderoga class cruisers is the Harpoon ER (Extended Range).The missile
can hit targets at a maximum distance of only 80 miles or 130 KM. It is also a pretty
old weapon and has a speed of only Mach 0.7 which makes it susceptible to intercepts.
U.S does have SM1, SM 2 & SM6 supersonic missiles which have a primary role of air defense with
a secondary Anti Ship role, but their small warheads are not capable of crippling a large
warship.
The only credible anti-ship weapon is the NSM which has a range of 100 miles or 185
km.NSM is capable of high subsonic speeds.It has sea skim mode by which it travels very
close to the surface, making it hard to detect and intercept. It is also designed to maneuver
to avoid enemy defenses.But even NSM is constrained by its range and has limited operational deployment.
The P-8 Poseidon is developed by Boeing & is modified from the 737-800ERX.It is capable
of anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-surface warfare (ASUW), and shipping interdiction.
It also has early warning self-protection (EWSP) ability.
Powered by 2 × CFM56-7B27A turbofans that are capable of generating 121 kN of thrust,
it is able to reach a maximum speed of 490 knots or 907 km/h. It has a combat radius
of 1,200 nmi or 2,222 km that enables it to cover large swaths of ocean.
The P-8 is equipped with radar, optical and sonar sensors to detect submarines & surface
ships. The P-8 features the Raytheon APY-10 multi-mission surface search radar.
AN/APY-10 mechanically scanned radar is a development of Raytheon's AN/APS-149 radar.
Compared to the predecessors, it is smaller in size, lighter, and uses less power. The
radar is optimized for maritime, littoral and overland surveillance.The AN/APY-10 is
able to provide high resolution radar images enabling P8 to identify warships from long
distances.
P-8 is also able to drop and monitor sonobuoys which are basically expendable sonar systems.P-8A
is the American variant and the U.S has received delivery of more than 90 of these with approximately
additional 30 on order.
P-8 has 5 internal and 6 external stations for weapons and can currently deploy AGM-84H/K
SLAM-ER, AGM-84 Harpoon, Mark 54 torpedo, missiles, mines and smart as well as free-fall bombs.
So, just like the U.S Navy's surface fleet, it is currently equipped with aging Harpoon
missile for the Anti Ship role.
The AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile is a stealthy and highly precise surface-skimming
cruise missile with a range of 230 miles or 620 for the Extended Range AGM-158B. Viewers
may note that a shorter range variant was used in combat on April 4, 2018, when two
B-1B bombers launched nineteen of the stealth missiles at a Syrian research center in Barzeh.Lockheed
Martin worked on the missile further and AGM-158C is developed which is an antiship variant
and is named LRSM by the U.S Navy.The missile is subsonic and but since it is LO (Low Observable),
the enemy warship will not see it coming till it is very close.This strategy is a stark
contrast to Russian and Chinese missile which depend on speed to defeat the ship’s defense.It
is powered by an F107 turbofan engine and has a 1,000 lb (450 kg) blast-fragmentation
penetrator.The warhead is potent enough to cripple a large warship.LRASM will cost around
$3 million apiece which makes it twice as costly as Harpoon missiles. US Navy plans
to acquire 467 LRASMs with an initial order of 23.
LRASM deploys multiple sensors & techniques to home in on the targets.The details are
here:1. It has an inertial and jam-resistant GPS navigation system. This is mainly used
for navigating the initial phase of the journey.2. A two-way data link is present, which allows
the launching warship to send course corrections data. It will be used for mid-course guidance
during which missile flies at medium altitude.3. It has a guidance algorithm that can acquire
& target enemy ships when external guidance is disrupted. It is mainly used in the mid
to final phase. The algorithm is smart enough to differentiate civilian ships and low priority
enemy warships from the actual target.4. It has a Radio-frequency sensor which is activated
in the terminal phase. The system homes in on an adversary’s radar signals—the very
radar which is used by the enemy warships to track the missile. 5. In the terminal
phase, the Infra Red sensor is also engaged. It is used to make the last-ditch adjustment
so that the missile can hit specific points of an enemy warship to maximize damage. In
this phase, the missile skims close to the surface which makes it hard to target.It is
important to note that LRASMs can be deployed in swarm mode which will enable it to saturate
enemy defenses.LRASM also deploys electronic counter-countermeasures (ECCM) to overcome
the enemy’s countermeasures.
It is important to note that China’s rise , as
predicted by many experts is not peaceful.In recent times, China has been very aggressive
in it’s posturing. China’s corrosive behaviors in South China Sea and neighboring
areas are indicative of things to come in the future.
P-8 Poseidon's capability in dealing with submarines is well known and is very important
as China is fielding more and more subs.But leveraging the P8 for Anti Surface Warfare
is force multiplier as the move will give the U.S Navy a lot of tactical flexibility.
Stealthy LRASM fired in swarm mode from different directions will be hard to intercept and will
put the Chinese Navy’s warship at risk from long ranges.