Chris Pocock has been covering the defense beat for AIN for over 30&nbsp;years. He is a British citizen and a graduate of the University of Cambridge. Chris worked in the air cargo business for ten years before becoming a full-time writer in 1983. He subsequently edited two air cargo journals before becoming AIN’s Defense Editor. He retired from that position in 2018, but still contributes to the publication. Chris has written extensively on aerial reconnaissance, including four books on the history of the U-2 spyplane. He also lectures on this and other topics related to intelligence-gathering in the Cold War.

Defense Correspondent

Chris Pocock

Greenville,Texas-based L-3 Mission Integration announced that it has chosen the Bombardier Q400 regional airliner as the platform for a new maritime surveillance aircraft (MSA) offering. The company is partnering with Bombardier, Marshall Aerospace and Cascade Aerospace for the venture.


“We have customized the Q400 aircraft for longer mission endurance and lower operating costs than other maritime and ISR aircraft in use today,” said Mark Von Schwarz, president of L-3 Mission Integration. “The Q400 aircraft design, combined with our proven, high-performance mission system, will meet the most demanding maritime and ISR requirements.”


Cascade is a Canadian MRO that has already done freighter conversions of the Q400. Marshall Aerospace is a British MRO best known for C-130 work. Its presence on the team suggests that L-3 is eyeing a possible British requirement for a maritime patrol aircraft, following the scrapping of the undelivered Nimrod MRA.4 fleet in 2010.


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L-3 Enters Maritime Patrol Market with Q400 Conversion

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