Boeing receives $2.4bn contract for 16 P-8A Poseidon aircraft

Boeing’s P-8A Poseidon program will enter full production, following a $2.4bn contract award from the U.S. Navy for 16 additional aircraft that will bolster maritime patrol capabilities. The order, which will take the total fleet to 53, marks a transition from preliminary low-rate production. Boeing has delivered 13 P-8As to the Navy, which deployed its first patrol squadron to Kadena, Japan in December 2013 and has been conducting operational missions since then.