Airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft are airborne radar systems designed to detect and track aircraft, missiles, ships and vehicles and provide command and control to direct friendly forces. Some operators, such as the Royal Air Force refer to such aircraft as Airborne early warning (AEW), while others reserve the shorter name for AEW aircraft lacking command and control facilities. [1]
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Turkish Air Forces operate 4 AWACs of their own.
| Operator | Aircraft | First flight | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indian Air Force | Airbus A320 AEW&C [27] | TBD | 6 |
| Italian Air Force [ citation needed ] | IAI Eitam | 2015 | 2 |
| NATO [28] | Boeing 737 AEW&C | 2031 | 6 |
| Russian Air Force [29] | Beriev A-100 | 2017 | ? |
| Royal Air Force [30] | Boeing 737 AEW&C | ? | 3 |
| Ukrainian Air Force [31] | Saab 340 AEW&C | ? | 2 |
| United States Air Force [32] | Boeing 737 AEW&C | 2027 | 26 by 2032 |
Pakistan's first Saab 2000 Erieye entered service on 29 December 2009. A second example followed in April with 2 more to follow by year's end.
The Boeing E-3 Sentry is an American airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft developed by Boeing. E-3s are commonly known as AWACS. Derived from the Boeing 707 airliner, it provides all-weather surveillance, command, control, and communications, and is used by the United States Air Force, NATO, French Air and Space Force, Royal Saudi Air Force and Chilean Air Force. The E-3 has a distinctive rotating radar dome (rotodome) above the fuselage. Production ended in 1992 after 68 aircraft had been built.
The Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye is an American all-weather, carrier-capable tactical airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft. This twin-turboprop aircraft was designed and developed during the late 1950s and early 1960s by the Grumman Aircraft Company for the United States Navy as a replacement for the earlier, piston-engined E-1 Tracer, which was rapidly becoming obsolete. The aircraft's performance has been upgraded with the E-2B and E-2C versions, where most of the changes were made to the radar and radio communications due to advances in electronic integrated circuits and other electronics. The fourth major version of the Hawkeye is the E-2D, which first flew in 2007. The E-2 was the first aircraft designed specifically for AEW, as opposed to a modification of an existing airframe, such as the Boeing E-3 Sentry. Variants of the Hawkeye have been in continuous production since 1960, giving it the longest production run of any carrier-based aircraft.
An airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) system is an airborne radar early warning system designed to detect aircraft, ships, vehicles, missiles and other incoming projectiles at long ranges, as well as performing command and control of the battlespace in aerial engagements by informing and directing friendly fighter and attack aircraft. AEW&C units are also used to carry out aerial surveillance over ground and maritime targets, and frequently perform battle management command and control (BMC2). When used at altitude, the radar system on AEW&C aircraft allows the operators to detect, track and prioritize targets and identify friendly aircraft from hostile ones in real-time and from much farther away than ground-based radars. Like ground-based radars, AEW&C systems can be detected and targeted by opposing forces, but due to aircraft mobility and extended sensor range, they are much less vulnerable to counter-attacks than ground systems.
The Gulfstream G550 is a business jet aircraft produced by General Dynamics' Gulfstream Aerospace unit in Savannah, Georgia, US. The certification designation is GV-SP. A version with reduced fuel capacity was marketed as the G500. Gulfstream ceased production of the G550 in July 2021.
Number 8 Squadron of the Royal Air Force last operated the Boeing E-3D Sentry AEW1 (AWACS) from RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire. As of 2020, the RAF AWACS fleet was made up of three Sentry AEW1s, down from seven originally ordered in the late 1980s. Pursuant to the 2021 defence review, the E-3D Sentry aircraft made its final flight in U.K. service in August 2021.
The Boeing E-7 Wedgetail is a twin-engine airborne early warning and control aircraft based on the Boeing 737 Next Generation design. It has a fixed, active electronically scanned array radar antenna instead of a rotating one as with the 707-based Boeing E-3 Sentry. The E-7 was designed for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) under "Project Wedgetail" and designated E-7A Wedgetail.
An active electronically scanned array (AESA) is a type of phased array antenna, which is a computer-controlled antenna array in which the beam of radio waves can be electronically steered to point in different directions without moving the antenna. In the AESA, each antenna element is connected to a small solid-state transmit/receive module (TRM) under the control of a computer, which performs the functions of a transmitter and/or receiver for the antenna. This contrasts with a passive electronically scanned array (PESA), in which all the antenna elements are connected to a single transmitter and/or receiver through phase shifters under the control of the computer. AESA's main use is in radar, and these are known as active phased array radar (APAR).
The Embraer R-99 is the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) military designation of the EMB-145-RS. Various models of the aircraft have been produced to perform special mission duties, including the E99 for airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) missions, the R-99 for remote sensing, and the P-99 for maritime patrol.
The Beriev A-50 is a Soviet-origin airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft that is based on the Ilyushin Il-76 transport plane. Developed to replace the Tupolev Tu-126 "Moss", the A-50 first flew in 1978. Its existence was revealed to the Western Bloc in 1978 by Adolf Tolkachev. It entered service in 1985, with about 40 produced by 1992.
The Erieye radar system is an Airborne Early Warning and Control System (AEW&C) developed by Saab Electronic Defence Systems of Sweden. It uses active electronically scanned array (AESA) technology. The Erieye is used on a variety of aircraft platforms, such as the Saab 340 and Embraer R-99. It has recently been implemented on the Bombardier Global 6000 aircraft as the GlobalEye.
The EL/M-2075 Phalcon is an airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) active electronically scanned array radar system developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Elta Electronics Industries of Israel. Its primary objective is to provide intelligence to maintain air superiority and conduct surveillance. It was surpassed by newer versions—the EL/W-2085 and the EL/W-2090.
The KJ-2000 is a Chinese second-generation airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft developed by the Shaanxi Aircraft Corporation, and is the first AEW&C system in service to the People's Liberation Army Air Force. It is built upon a modified Russian Ilyushin Il-76 airframe using domestically designed avionics and a fixed radome featuring three active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars each covering a 120-degree sector, unlike the rotating radome on the comparable E-3 Sentry serving the United States Air Force.
The 111 Squadron "Jaeger" was formed when the Republic of Singapore Air Force acquired four Grumman E-2C Hawkeye Airborne Early Warning aircraft in 1987. Based at Tengah Air Base, its primary function is to perform airborne surveillance and early warning. Other functions include Aircraft Intercept Control, Surface Surveillance, Search and Rescue and Air Traffic Control.
The KJ-200 NATO reporting name: Moth or Y-8 Balance Beam system, is an airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) program developed by Shaanxi Aircraft Corporation..
The DRDO Airborne Early Warning and Control System (AEW&CS) is a project of India's Defence Research and Development Organisation to develop an airborne early warning and control system for the Indian Air Force. It is also referred to as NETRA Airborne Early Warning and Control System (AEW&CS).
The Saab 340 AEW&C is a Swedish airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft; a variant of the Saab 340 aircraft is designated S 100B Argus by the Swedish Air Force.
The EL/W-2085 is an airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) multi-band radar system developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Elta Electronics Industries of Israel. Its primary objective is to provide intelligence to maintain air superiority and conduct surveillance. The system is currently in-service with Israel, Italy, and Singapore.
The IAI EL/W-2090 is an airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) radar system developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Elta Electronics Industries of Israel. Its primary objective is to provide intelligence to maintain air superiority and conduct surveillance. The system is currently in-service with the Indian Air Force.
GlobalEye is a multi-role airborne early warning & control (AEW&C) platform from Swedish defence and security company Saab. GlobalEye consists of a suite of sensors using Saab's Erieye ER radar and mission system, installed in the Bombardier Global 6000/6500 long-range business jet.