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Navy grounds 39 P-3s over faulty wings

The Navy on Monday grounded 39 P-3 Orion anti-submarine patrol planes — nearly one in four of its inventory — because of concerns that a structural defect could cause either of the aircraft’s wings to break off in flight.

The grounding was the result of engineering analysis and computer modeling and was not caused by any actual structural failures, said John Milliman, spokesman for Naval Air Systems Command.

Navy engineers looked at several factors, Milliman said, including the number of hours a particular aircraft has flown, the maneuvers it performed while in flight, the altitude the aircraft have operated at and the climate in areas where it has been based in determining which aircraft should be grounded and which should be kept flying.

Milliman said each grounded aircraft will be flown to a repair depot in Jacksonville, Fla. Those that can be repaired will be out of service for between 18 and 24 months. Those that can’t will be retired.

Navy officials have not determined how much the repairs will cost or whether retired aircraft will be replaced, he said.

Navy officials will rotate P-3s from other parts of the fleet to replace the 10 grounded aircraft that are currently deployed, and commanders plan to ensure that each squadron can meet all of its operational requirements.

The Navy has 161 P-3s. Their average age is 28 years old; the oldest aircraft is 44 and the youngest 18. Milliman was unable to say whether the age or flight time of the grounded planes was greater than that of the P-3 fleet as a whole.