Page 34 - ADT JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2024 Digital Magazine | GBP

© Airbus Defence
THE WAY FORWARD
The surge in demand among militaries for modern
maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) is set to continue
W ith NATO militaries
growing increasingly
wary of Russian under-
sea warfare capabilities and
China expanding its submarine
fleet significantly in recent years,
the demand for new generation
maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) has
spiked.
Designed to fly over oceans,
seas, and coastal areas to mon-
itor maritime traffic, detect and
track vessels, and assist in search
and rescue operations, the role
played by MPA has expanded in
recent years to include anti-sur-
face warship and anti-submarine
warfare capabilities. Triggered by
heightened global maritime security
concerns and increasing spending
on defence by countries across the
34 | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2024
By ARUN SIVASANKARAN
board, militaries are either investing useful lives with new and advanced
in new aircraft or upgrading existing
craft that have greater patrolling
demands of new-age naval warfare.
MPA to make them suitable for the capabilities and potency.
Responding to the increased
While the U.S. is ramping up efforts demand for MPA, major players
to match the whirlwind pace at such as Boeing, Airbus, Lockheed
which China is beefing up its mari- Martin, Leonardo, and Northrop
time power, militaries in the Middle Grumman are competing to develop
East and Asia Pacific region are advanced technologies and carve
also showing an increasing appetite out a bigger market share. The
for adding new assets to enhance growth of the market would be even
their naval strength and readiness. more pronounced if not for navies
The maritime patrol aircraft market, using unmanned aircraft systems
which was valued at US$ 6.7 billion (UAS) to complement MPA. By
in 2023, is projected to reach USD using multiple unmanned aerial
11.9 billion by 2028, at a CAGR vehicles (UAVs) to accompany a
of 12.1 %. According to industry single manned aircraft, navies are
experts, market demand is being able to patrol much vaster areas.
driven primarily by the need to With UAVs being considerably
replace aging maritime patrol craft less expensive than MPA, navies
that are nearing the end of their are looking to increasingly use
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