A Look At The U.S. Navy's P-8 Poseidon. A Modified Boeing 737 U.S. Navy Patrol Plane

A US Navy P-8 Poseidon. Darrin Zammit Lupi/Reuters

Business Insider: See inside the modified Boeing 737 US Navy patrol plane the government just ordered $1.5 billion more of. Take a look at the P-8 Poseidon.

* Boeing recently secured a $1.5 billion order from the US Navy for additional P-8 Poseidon aerial patrol aircraft.
* First delivered to the Navy in 2012, the P-8 is a multi-role aircraft based on the Boeing 737 passenger jet capable of surveillance and anti-submarine warfare.
* Its onboard armament can include torpedoes, harpoons, and cruise missiles allowing it to engage in warfare when required.

Boeing just landed a massive $1.5 billion order for 18 aircraft from the US Navy for an aerial patrol plane capable of sinking ships, the P-8 Poseidon.

Though it performs and functions more like a naval ship than a commercial jet, Boeing's P-8 Poseidon is actually the military variant of the manufacturer's popular 737-800 Next Generation aircraft.

Instead of flying passengers or cargo, a task routinely performed by the civilian 737, the P-8 has warfighting capabilities through its deployable onboard armament of weapons that can sink ships and submarines, in addition to its advanced onboard surveillance set up to track maritime and ground-based activity.

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WNU Editor: This $1.5 billion production contract for 18 P-8A Poseidon aircraft includes 8 for the US Navy, six for the South Korean Navy and four for the Royal New Zealand Air Force.

Update: Boeing wants a bail-out .... Boeing Wants a Government Bailout. The Pentagon Already Gave It One (Mother Jones).