NATO receives first E-3A AWACS with final upgrade
NATO received the first modernized Boeing E-3A Sentry AWACS on October 25.
The Boeing 707-based passenger aircraft landed at Geilenkirchen Air Base in Germany after undergoing modifications since April 2022.
According to NATO, the four-engine jet has undergone the Final Lifetime Extension Program (FLEP), which will keep the E-3 operational until 2035.
The E-3A Sentry will now undergo ground and flight tests before returning to service.
“During this phase, the aircraft will be operated and maintained by personnel from the NATO Airborne Early Warning and Control Programme Management Agency (NAPMA) and the NAEW&CF Force Combined Test Team (CTT), which will enhance support for the developmental testing of these modifications,” NATO said.
Boeing E-7 Wedgetail to replace E-3
The E-3A Sentry is an airborne early warning aircraft equipped with a pulse-doppler radar in a large rotating antenna mounted on top of the fuselage.
NATO decided to have its own radar fleet more than 40 years ago, and the first E-3 landed at Geilenkirchen in February 1982.
A total of 18 aircraft have been received, of which 14 remain operational, providing surveillance for 20 countries in the military alliance.
Despite the overhaul, the E-3s will begin to be replaced by Boeing E-7A Wedgetails from 2031.
NATO has ordered six aircraft initially, which are based on the 737-700 and feature a more advanced and capable synthetic aperture radar.
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