OFTs for RAF Poseidons land in Lossiemouth

The RAF has received its first pair of high-fidelity flight training simulators from Boeing for the P-8A Poseidon (pictured - designated Poseidon MRA Mk1 in UK service).

The full-scale Operational Flight Trainers (OFTs) will be installed in the £100 million Poseidon base at RAF Lossiemouth, along with other training devices.

‘A suite of Boeing training devices have been developed to provide interactive, high-fidelity simulations to train the pilots who operate the aircraft, and the rear crew who operate the sensors, communication and weapon systems,’ the company announced in an 18 August statement.

The Poseidon multi-mission MPA is capable of broad-area, maritime and coastal operations. The RAF has nine aircraft on order; the first arrived in the UK on 4 February and the second followed in March. All nine are expected to arrive in the UK by the end of 2021, according to Shephard Defence Insight.

Both aircraft operate from Kinloss Airfield, before the Poseidon MRA Mk1-specific facilities and the upgraded runway at RAF Lossiemouth are formally opened later in 2020.

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