“We were asked to put in our offer and then they [the NATO Support and Procurement Agency] didn't really go into discussion with us, because they had already decided they had to go and buy Wedgetail," Micael Johansson, CEO at Saab told Breaking Defense.
Despite disagreements with Boeing on pricing for the E-7A Wedgetail, Air Force acquisition chief Andrew Hunter said officials still see the radar plane "as a capability that makes sense and that we need to field in the near term.”
As threats evolve, the winning model ties digital engineering to manufacturing capacity and a reindustrialized supply chain.
Development of the Air Force’s first two rapid prototype radar planes proved more difficult than expected, according to acquisition chief Andrew Hunter.
As Breaking Defense toured Boeing's Seattle area facilities where the E-7 radar plane will take shape, company officials talked about getting the bird in the air — and their vision for what it can do.
Asked about the timeline floated by an L3Harris official, a NATO spokesperson told Breaking Defense the alliance is still assessing "the way ahead."
Though the UK will get three planes instead of five, the procurement report estimates that the E-7 program will cost $2.5 billion, only marginally less costly than the $2.7 billion agreed in the original order.
The MQ-9B and Gambit Series represent parallel capabilities that address global challenges for security head-on.
In an interview with Breaking Defense, chairman of the House Armed Services Tactical Air and Land Forces subcommittee Rep. Rob Wittman explains the committee’s thinking behind keeping AETP going, as well as the reason for slashing funds from NGAD.
Through its open systems architecture and agile software development, the E-7 provides rapid, affordable capability growth to remain a critical asset as threats evolve.
The Air Force previously provided notice it would award the contract to Boeing in a sole-source acquisition. The first aircraft is scheduled to arrive in fiscal 2027.
The AFSC capability program aims to define “a new generation of surveillance and control capabilities” underpinned by a systems of systems architecture approach, intended to integrate “multiple capabilities and platforms” for future multidomain operations, according to the RfI.
On today’s battlefield, mobility isn’t optional - it’s mission-critical.
“While the Plan continues to serve a useful purpose in reporting to Parliament on planned expenditure, the volatile external environment means this year’s Plan is already out of date,” said the NAO.
A tranche of F-35s will be delayed, as will the E-7 Wedgetail, while the Atlas transport has overcome a "regrettable collection of discoveries."
“That new start reprogramming would give us the flexibility to potentially speed it up somewhat,” said Steven Wert, who leads the Air Force's Program Executive Office Digital. “It's not going to be a dramatic speed up, but we're doing everything we can.”
"Getting the airplanes is about a two-year process, and then modifying them is another two year process," Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said Tuesday. "There are things that we could do, however, to maybe get access to aircraft earlier one way or another.”