JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md. –
The 2011 Joint Service Open House and airshow kicked off May 20 with crowds ranging into the upper thousands. Friday's events here were open for DoD personnel and Common Access Card holders only, however, students from around the National Capitol Region were allowed access in an effort to afford school-aged children a military perspective often unseen by local students.
One of the static displays seen at the event May 20 was the Orion P-3 Airborne Early Warning Detection and Monitoring aircraft. A prime example of the joint-base initiative push during this year's open house, this Navy aircraft is located in the midst of swarming crowds on the center of the flightline. The P-3's massive service radar ceiling makes this aircraft completely distinguishable from any other aircraft one's able to oogle over during this year's open house.
Not only is the aircraft strikingly memorable in size and shape, unlike its older and outdated air show aircraft counterparts, the P-3's mission still exists today in an extremely real-time capacity. From October 2010 to April 2011, the P-3 has stopped more than 86 thousand pounds of illegal drug influx, putting a stop to a combined total of more than 1 million terrorist dollars coming onto American soil. This capability is made possible by the radar signals provided by the P-3's aerial turbo-pop aircraft radar ceiling. Radar signals are captured, read and then transmitted to surrounding United States Coast Guard or Navy water units who deal with the information, threat or not, accordingly.
Mr. Chuck Blalock, National Air Security Operations Center detection enforcement officer, recognizes the high importance of his B-model P-3's mission and is primed to share it with all who visit the P-3 static display here this weekend.
"The P-3 works closely with Federal Emergency Management Agency and we were especially vital during Deep Water Horizon (the recent British Petroleum underwater oil spill off of the coast of The Gulf of Mexico cleanup efforts)," said Mr. Blalock.
Along with this distinction, the P-3 is the only law enforcement AEW aircraft in the world seen here. Developed to provide wide area search, increased command control and communications capabilities, the P-3 has an endurance of 12 hours of flight time and is capable of flying with a max gross weight of 135,000 pounds.
Guests to this year's Joint Service Open House have the opportunity to experience the flashy F-16 Thunderbird or the cockpit of the ultra-American B-25 Bomber, but with a closer look through the static displays, guests also have the opportunity to experience an aircraft that is protecting freedom in today's age.
"When we're done showcasing the P-3 at the air show this weekend, the P-3 will be out there, continuing to do the mission tomorrow," said Mr. Blalock. "While everyone else (aircraft displays) is packed away at a museum, we'll be out there, catching the bad guys."