The U.S. Air Force (USAF) has awarded Boeing a $2.56 billion contract to develop and deliver two prototype E-7A Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) “Wedgetail” aircraft. The contract also includes lifecycle development, training and fleet support for the USAF’s future E-7As.
It was in April 2022 that the USAF announced that it would replace part of its E-3 “Sentry” or Airborne Warning and Control System fleet with the Boeing E-7 “Wedgetail”.
In a statement, the service said the decision to go with the Wedgetail was based on market research and that it was “the only platform” capable of meeting all of the Defense Department’s requirements for tactical battle management, command and control and target tracking.
The service’s proposed budget for 2023 calls for retiring 15 E-3s, or about half the fleet, from Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma. It will provide $227 million in research, development, test and evaluation funds for the replacement. The first E-7 rapid prototype would be delivered in fiscal year 2027.
Boeing’s E-7 has long been considered the leading candidate. Pacific Air Forces Commander Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach has said he wants the service to quickly buy the E-7 as a replacement for the AWACS. More recently, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall told reporters that the Wedgetail was “the leading candidate, obviously.”
Boeing will be able to work on developing two new U.S. variants of the E-7 Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) aircraft that will be significantly different from the current E-7. These two aircraft will help define the specific standard that will equip the Air Force. “The E-7 is a proven platform,” said Stu Voboril, vice president and general manager of the E-7 program. “It is the only advanced aircraft capable of meeting the near-term requirements of the U.S. Air Force’s Airborne Early Warning & Control while allowing integration into the joint force.”
The U.S. Air Force has not yet announced how many E-7s it plans to acquire.
The E-7 provides a fully integrated, combat-proven and flexible command and control node that delivers multi-domain awareness in the most challenging operational environments. The E-7’s open systems architecture and agile software design enable the aircraft’s capabilities to evolve and stay ahead of future threats. The E-7 simultaneously tracks multiple air and maritime threats with 360-degree coverage via the Multi-role Electronically Scanned Array (MESA) sensor. MESA provides the warfighter with critical domain awareness to detect and identify adversary targets at long ranges and dynamically adapts to emerging tactical situations.
It provides the ability to dynamically adapt to each unique or emerging tactical situation. The advanced radar can extend its detection range without having to fly closer to a threat situation. By targeting its energy on the threat, the sensor can nearly double its detection range at the emphasis location, while maintaining a complete background of the entire battlespace. Compared to other surveillance radars, it also has higher update rates for improved tracking, bringing battle management to the edge of the radar surveillance envelope. This powerful radar system enables simultaneous tracking of air and sea targets, including the ability to revisit high-level targets at rapid speeds. At the same time, the MESA provides a fully integrated, long-range, identification, friend or foe (IFF) capability to maintain continuous surveillance of the operational area. The E-7 offers the most survivable and advanced airborne moving target indicator (AMTI) capability available.
The E-7 provides beyond-line-of-sight connectivity to joint and coalition assets in degraded and contested environments.
Based on a militarized Next-Generation 737 airframe, the E-7 is a persistent, ready-to-fly platform that reduces operating and sustainment costs, increases mission readiness rates and provides unmatched interoperability across a growing global user community. Converted from the Next-Generation 737-700, the E-7 leverages existing commercial derivative aircraft design, certification and modification processes, enabling E-7s to be fielded to meet mission requirements. With more than 9,000 737s worldwide, including 30 global repair facilities and 250 global service centers, the E-7 benefits from significantly reduced maintenance and logistics costs.
Currently in service or under contract with Australia, South Korea, Turkey and the United Kingdom.
