CP-140 Aurora CP-140A Arcturus | |
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CP-140 Aurora 140107 flying at John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport near Mount Hope, Ontario | |
Role | Maritime patrol aircraft (CP-140) MPA trainer aircraft (CP-140A) |
Manufacturer | Lockheed Corporation |
First flight | 22 March 1979 (CP-140) |
Introduction | 1980 |
Retired | 2011 (CP-140A only) |
Status | Active (CP-140M only) |
Primary user | Royal Canadian Air Force |
Number built | 21 (18 CP-140M + 3 CP-140A) |
Developed from | Lockheed P-3 Orion |
The Lockheed CP-140 Aurora is a maritime patrol aircraft operated by the Royal Canadian Air Force. The aircraft is based on the Lockheed P-3 Orion airframe, but mounts the electronics suite of the Lockheed S-3 Viking. "Aurora" refers to the Roman goddess of dawn who flies across the sky each morning ahead of the sun.[1] Aurora also refers to the Aurora Borealis, the "northern lights", that are prominent over northern Canada and the Arctic Ocean.
The CP-140A Arcturus was a related variant used primarily for pilot training and coastal surface patrol missions.