SURVEY European MPAs Part 1
MARITIME PATROL aircraft (MPAs) are fixed-wing assets, often in the airliner class, equipped with sensors and weapons. They can operate for up to around ten hours and are generally tasked with three missions: anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-surface warfare (ASuW) and search and rescue (SAR).
Russian surface and subsurface threats have traditionally been the main focus of the MPA communities of the European NATO and Partnership for Peace (PfP) air arms, which are the focus of this survey.
More recently, tracking potential terrorists and smugglers have become increasingly important tasks. While MPAs are primarily intended to protect sovereign waters and territory, some European air arms also – or alternatively – operate unarmed maritime surveillance aircraft (MSAs).
