NAVAL AIR SYSTEMS COMMAND, PATUXENT RIVER, Md. – The Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft program office’s (PMA-290) P-8A Poseidon program surpasses 1,000 flight hours Aug. 11.

“This 1,000 hour milestone is a testament to the incredible effort and dedication of the Navy-Boeing P-8A team to deliver the P-8A to the fleet as planned,” said Neal Rothback, deputy team lead for P-8A.

This milestone was reached one year, almost to the day, after the arrival of the program’s third developmental test aircraft, T-3, which arrived at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., Aug. 13, 2010.

“The ability of the P-8A program to reach the 1,000 test flight hour mark so early in the test program’s schedule speaks to the significant benefit gained by leveraging the commercial derivative nature of this highly reliable aircraft, its systems and mature support structure,” Rothback said.

The Poseidon is the first Navy combat aircraft built from the ground up on a commercial production line, which also allows the program to reduce time and overall cost for the Navy.

The P-8A test squadron consists of three aircraft, designated, T-1, T-2 and T-3. T-1 arrived at Pax River on April 10, 2010 where it is being used for airworthiness testing and envelope expansion. T-2 arrived on June 19, 2010 and it is primarily used for mission systems testing. T-3 is used primarily for stores separation testing, but also supports mission systems testing.

The program recently added a fourth aircraft, T-4, to its stable of aircraft at Pax on June 24, 2011. This aircraft is the first of three production representative aircraft that will be used to conduct Initial Operational Test & Evaluation.

“The P-8A test team has been achieving high flight rates and meeting the appropriate benchmarks,” said Tony Schmidt, P-8A assistant program manager for Test & Evaluation.

Since the program’s initial operational testing at Pax in April 2010, the Poseidon has gone through vigorous developmental testing, to include thermal response testing in a hot environment, and completing the flutter program by meeting the Navy’s required flutter safety margins.

“The team has accomplished a lot over the past year, and with the arrival of the T-4 test aircraft in June, we are moving forward to a successful start of Operational Test,” said Capt. Michael Moran, PMA-290 program manager. “The high quality work and passion of the P-8A team has made this 1,000 hour milestone possible. We look forward to the arrival of T-5 this fall and having continued successes within the program.”

In the coming year, the program will be focusing on completing developmental testing, preparing for operational testing, and initiating fleet transition. Initial Operational Capability of the P-8A is in 2013.