Dash 8 Q400 patrouille maritime

Dubbed the Q400 MMA, the platform will be modified to carry an additional 4,540kg (10,000lb) of fuel to enable long-range operations, and a bomb bay for the carriage of torpedoes for the anti-submarine warfare role.

“All the design work is completed, and we will start flight testing early next year,” says Nicholas “Flash” Gordon, director international programmes for L-3 Mission Integration.

The company’s MMA configuration also includes a L-3 mission management system that is already operational on some Lockheed Martin P-3 Orions, combined with a maritime search radar and electronic warfare equipment from Selex ES. Acoustic systems, which will share commonality with the installation on the UK Royal Navy’s AgustaWestland Merlin HM2 helicopter, will be provided by Ultra Electronics Sonar Systems.

Gordon says L-3 hopes to secure a supplemental type certificate for the Q400 adaptations by mid-2016, and that the MMA version will be offered to the UK and existing European P-3 operators. The modified type would be able to fly 800nm (1,480km) and remain on station for more than 4h, with the option of extending this further through air-to-air refuelling, says L-3.