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10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. AP-3C Orion at the Treloar Technology Centre September 2023: Nick-D· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 2. AP-3 Orion with bomb bay doors open 2010: Jason B from Australia· CC BY 2.0
- 3. Australian Orion MPA Flying Over HMS Echo During Search for Malaysian Airliner MH370 MOD 45157505: LS(HM) Andy Coutanche· OGL v1.0
- 4. Loading Sonobouys on an AP-3C Orion: U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Woody Paschall· Public domain
- 5. RAAF Lockheed P-3C Orion CBR Gilbert-2: Jeff Gilbert· GFDL 1.2
- 6. An AP-3C Orionsfrom 11 Squadron arrives at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay in July 2016: U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Antonio Turretto Ramos· Public domain
- 7. AP-3 Orion near Dawin International Airport: Ken Hodge· CC BY 2.0
- 8. AP-3C Lockheed Martin Orion (5600767350): Andrew Arch from Melbourne, Australia· CC BY-SA 2.0
- 9. AP-3C Orion 2914934716: Allan Henderson· CC BY 2.0
- 10. AP-3C Orion 2918573216: Andrew Napier· CC BY 2.0
what is it?
The Lockheed AP-3C Orion is a variant of the P-3 Orion formerly used by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) for tasks such as naval fleet support, maritime surveillance, search and survivor supply and anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare. The 18 AP-3C Orions were upgraded from P-3Cs between 1997 and 2005, with the program taking three years longer than expected due to systems integration problems. All 18 AP-3C Orions were operated by No.
How to recognise it: 4 turboshaft engines · 30.9 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 27 years ago, in 1999.
- Top speed is 5.8× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- Wingspan of 30.9 m: about 7 cars parked nose to tail.
- Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 10 African elephants (~6 t each).
turboshaft: A turbine that turns a shaft, usually a helicopter rotor.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1999-05-19
- introduced
- 2002
- status
- retired
- number built
- 18
- role
- maritime patrol aircraft
- origin
- 🇺🇸 United States
- makers
- Lockheed Corporation
- engines
- 4× Allison T56-A-14
- crew
- 13
- length
- 35.6 m
- wingspan
- 30.9 m
- height
- 10.4 m
- max take-off weight
- 61.2 t
- top speed
- 750 km/h
- range
- —
- ceiling
- 8,626 m
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
family
Sources: Wikidata Q6665541, Wikipedia: Lockheed AP-3C Orion (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.