New Zealand's new military aircraft will be a step up for search and rescue in the Pacific, a defence expert says.
An image of the P-8A Poseidon aircraft that is set to replace the Air Force's Orion planes. Photo: Supplied / NZDF
The New Zealand government is spending $US1.6 billion on four Boeing P-8A Poseidon planes to replace the ageing fleet of Orions which have been operated by the Royal New Zealand Air Force since the 1960s.
Defence and security expert John Moreman of Massey University's Centre for Defence and Security Studies said the P-8s, due to start operating in 2023, would have the latest suite of surveillance and communications equipment to help in search and rescue and fisheries surveillance.
"They will be able to utilise the existing and probably (by) then enhanced intelligence systems. They have a greater range than the Orion, a greater air speed, more of an ability to search and monitor over a broader area."
Listen to the interview with John Moreman on Dateline Pacific
Crew members on board a US P-8A Poseidon searching for Malaysia Airlines MH370 plane which went missing in 2014 Photo: AFP /US Navy
Under international agreements, New Zealand has search and rescue responsibilities for 11.5 million square kilometres of ocean.
Presently the P-3 Orions spend a fifth to a sixth of their flying hours on search and rescue in the region, according to Dr Moreman.
Much of the search system onboard the P-8A Poseidons is digital and canisters of survival equipment can be dropped quite accurately over stranded vessels, he said.
"Between its range, its airspeed and its surveillance equipment it can cover a broader area, somewhat faster, so there is the possibility the aircraft can be on scene sooner than an Orion could be."
The new planes would be a "very good" aircraft to survey the ocean for illegal fishing, building on the defence force's existing capabilities, Dr Moreman said.
The US Navy used the P-8A Poseidon in the search over the Indian Ocean for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.
The planes are similar to the commercial Boeing 737 but can be fitted with missiles, torpedoes and solar technology specially designed to hunt submarines.
The new planes have drawn criticism from the New Zealand Green Party who said they were incredibly expensive and continued an old-style obsession with weapons which New Zealand needed to move away from.