It sounds like they are bringing in the 6th station earlier than anticipated for block 1, block 3 will have other uses for it.
http://www.janes.com/article/53639/u...-asuw-missions
The P-8A is currently fitted with five fully functioning mission crew workstations, but has space for an additional sixth already set aside. This additional station is already fully 'plumbed in', and requires only the mission system controls and consoles to be fitted.
The sixth workstation is being activated to correct a deficiency in the baseline Increment 1 capability standard, while Increment 3 will capitalise on the addition to facilitate the addition of new capabilities in line with the P-8A Incremental Acquisition Strategy. One Increment 3 capability set that might necessitate the installation of a sixth mission station is the operation and teaming of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Boeing has been testing the MagEagle Compressed Carriage (MECC) UAV since 2010, with a view to deploying the system from the P-8.
Last edited by a1bill; 19th Aug 2015 at 11:54.