The first of the RAF's new £3bn fleet of spy planes has landed at a military base in the north of Scotland.

The maritime patrol aircraft will form a new squadron responsible for hunting Russian submarines and protecting the country's nuclear fleet.

The Boeing P-8 Poseiden, nicknamed "Pride of Moray", made the transatlantic crossing from Jacksonville in Florida - it will operate in the Arctic and north Atlantic and can perform a search and rescue role if needed.

It is the first of nine ordered by the British government of the aircraft. They will be delivered by 2021 and stationed at RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland. The RAF has calculated that nine is the fewest number of aircraft it needs to protect the nuclear deterrent.

Image: The plane, nicknamed the Pride of Moray, made a transatlantic crossing from Jacksonville in Florida

Russian submarine activity has increased to Cold War levels as Moscow looks to assert claim over the Arctic and pushes its naval forces close to NATO territory. On one occasion last October the Russian Navy put ten submarines at sea in the High North at the same time.


The P-8s will drop sonobuoys, small buoys with an attached sonar system, into the sea to monitor enemy submarine movements.

They can operate as high as 41,000ft and as low as 200ft above the water; they will also carry Harpoon anti-ship missiles and torpedoes to defend against attack.

It is eight years since its predecessor, the Nimrod, stopped flying in 2012. Britain has relied on allies to protect its coastline in the intervening years.

The RAF fleet will operate closely with US and Norwegian allies to cover a region of recent heightened military activity.

The Pentagon has injected £80m into new facilities at RAF Lossiemouth so that their aircraft can be stationed at the Scottish base if necessary.

"The Poseidon MRA1 is a game-changing Maritime Patrol Aircraft," said the Chief of the Air Staff Mike Wigston.

"I am delighted and proud to see the 'Pride of Moray' and her crews returning to maritime patrol flying from Scotland, working alongside the Royal Navy to secure our seas and protect our nation. Russian submarines have nowhere to hide."

Image: The spy plane, centre, was accompanied by two other aircraft before it landed in Scotland

Its arrival was watched by senior figures in government and the armed forces, include Defence Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan.

She said: "Our Poseidon fleet will soon join an integrated UK force of fighter jets, ships, submarines, helicopters and highly-trained Royal Marines, ready to operate in Arctic conditions. The UK will not stand by if peace in the Arctic region is threatened.

"RAF Lossiemouth's strategic northerly location makes it one of the most important air stations in the UK: already home to half of the UK's Typhoon Force, and now sitting at the heart of our anti-submarine operations."