Denmark plans to acquire two Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, Defence Minister Jeppe Bruus said on Tuesday during the NATO Summit in Ankara.
The Danish government did not disclose the expected value of the acquisition or the planned delivery schedule.
The aircraft are intended to expand Denmark's ability to monitor the waters around Greenland and the Faroe Islands, two parts of the Danish Realm that have gained greater strategic importance as NATO increases its military activity in the Arctic and North Atlantic.
According to the defence ministry, the P-8A would also help Denmark meet NATO capability targets in anti-submarine warfare, a mission for which the Poseidon was specifically developed.
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Denmark currently relies on Bombardier Challenger 604 aircraft for maritime patrol missions. The Royal Danish Air Force operates three of the business jets in this role, mainly for surveillance, fisheries control, environmental monitoring and search-and-rescue support.
Those aircraft received a mid-life upgrade in recent years, with new mission equipment that included radar and cockpit improvements. Even so, the Challenger 604 is a smaller and more limited platform compared with the P-8A, which can carry sonobuoys, torpedoes and dedicated anti-submarine sensors.
The acquisition plan follows a review launched last year, when Copenhagen said it was evaluating options for new submarine-hunting maritime patrol aircraft to strengthen surveillance around Greenland and the Faroe Islands.
The announcement also comes after repeated criticism from U.S. President Donald Trump, who has argued that Denmark is not doing enough to defend Greenland. Trump has also called for U.S. control of the Arctic territory, citing national security concerns linked to Russia and China.
The P-8A Poseidon is based on the Boeing 737-800ERX airliner and is already operated by several NATO members, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Norway and Germany. Canada has also selected the aircraft to replace its CP-140 Aurora fleet.
