[68skylark]

If anyone knows, why couldn't C-130s be used for this role?

I was wondering the same thing. Seems to me that C-130's are used in some roles that might be similar to what the Navy needs (e.g. maritime search and rescue work with the U. S. Coast Guard, and weather recon with the Air Force). So couldn't the C-130 be adapted for Navy use?

[Non-Sequitur]

bump

[Long Cut]

C-130's don't fit the marritime patrol role. They do not have the manueverability of a P-3, there's no place to put PSLT's, no room for a bomb bay (and torpedoes HAVE to be carried in one), no place to put some of the sensors.

And it's STILL a 45+ year old design. There's much better, more reliable materials, engines, and methods of construction out there that we should be using.