COMPACAF flies Australian E-7 Wedgetail

An Australian E-7 Wedgetail aircraft sits on the flight line on Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, April 16, 2021.  (US Air Force/Tech. Sgt. Jimmie D. Pike)

WASHINGTON: The Air Force has chosen the Boeing E-7 Wedgetail to replace its aging fleet of E-3 Sentry airborne warning and control system (AWACS) planes, but the first prototype won’t be ready until fiscal 2027, the service announced in a statement today.

“The Boeing E-7 is the only platform capable of meeting the requirements for the Defense Department’s tactical battle management, command and control and moving target indication capabilities within the timeframe needed to replace the aging E-3,” the Air Force said in a statement.

The service intends to ink a contract with Boeing sometime in FY23 and will begin funding the acquisition of the first “rapid prototype aircraft” using the $227 million in development funding requested as part of the FY23 budget. A second prototype aircraft is planned to be funded in FY24, followed by a production decision in FY25.

The Air Force’s use of the phrase “rapid prototype” seems to be stretching the meaning of both words. The first aircraft won’t deliver to the US Air Force until FY27, despite already being in production for the UK’s Royal Air Force, a five year gap that doesn’t quite seem rapid. As to being a prototype, the E-7 Wedgetail itself is a proven design, based on the Boeing 737 Next Generation airliner and first delivered to the Royal Australian Air Force in 2009.

RELATED: US Air Force will buy E-7 Wedgetail in 2022, Boeing exec claims 

That said, it’s possible the US-specific version of the Wedgetail could include various new or developmental capabilities. In a request for information released by the Air Force in February, the service sought details from industry about potential AWACS replacements and their respective capabilities, including and advanced air moving target indication radar, battle management command and control (BMC2) system, self-defense systems and key communications systems like Link 16 and Mobile User Objective System.

The Air Force statement does not make note of any changes to the baseline configuration. Boeing referred questions about the Air Force’s decision to the service.

“We continue to be encouraged by the U.S. Air Force’s interest in the E-7A,” Boeing spokeswoman Didi VanNierop said in a statement.  “We are confident in the E-7’s proven capabilities and look forward to delivering those capabilities to the U.S Air Force.”