Boeing announced in a press release that it has just completed the first flight of the United Kingdom's E-7 Wedgetail AWACS aircraft destined for the Royal Air Force . The E-7 Wedgetail is also planned to be the United States Air Force's partial replacement for the aging E-3 Sentry. The US Air Force has recently awarded Boeing a $2.
56 billion contract for the rapid development of two prototype E-7s for the service. First RAF E-7 Wedgetail in testing Boeing released pictures of the Boeing flight test crew conducting functional checks during the first flight of the RAF E-7 Wedgetail at the Birmingham Airport, marking a " significant milestone in the program's test and evaluation phase ." The aircraft is one of three Boeing 737 NG aircraft in Britain undergoing extensive modification to be converted to the country's next generation of AWACS aircraft.
The aircraft are being modified by a " highly skilled team of over 100 people at STS Aviation Services in Birmingham ." "This first flight marks a significant milestone for the programme and for our team who have worked tirelessly with our partners to progress what is a hugely complex endeavour. We are moving forward and will be delivering this critical capability to the RAF.
" - DE&S Director Air Support, Richard Murray The United Kingdom has three E-7 Wedgetails on order, (although that number may eventually rise to five). The British plan to operate them at RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland, where Boeing's local suppliers and contractors contractors are nearing the completion of the infrastructure and support needed to operate the aircraft. The RAF's No.
8 Squadron will operate them. The RAF currently operates a fleet of RC-135W Rivet Joint AWACS aircraft - one of which nearly got shot down in 2022 by a rogue Russian pilot as it monitored the war in Ukraine from international airspace. E-7A Wedgetails are needed to replace the aging E-3 Sentries and ensure the US Air Force can continue to monitor the battlespace.
The AWACS of choice for the US Air Force and allies The E-7 Wedgtail was initially designed for the Australian Air Force but has since been purchased by a number of US allies, including the UK, South Korea, and Turkey, and may be selected by Canada (it has also been selected by NATO and the organization has six on order). The US Air Force is also expected to purchase 26 of them (Australia already possesses six of them). "The E-7A Wedgetail provides Australia with one of the most advanced airspace battle management capabilities in the world.
The Wedgetail’s ability to coordinate a joint air, sea and land battle in real time significantly increases the effectiveness of the Australian Defence Force (ADF)." - RAAF The Australian Air Force, Royal Air Force, and US Air Force enjoy a tri-lateral agreement to develop " cooperative Wedgetail interoperability, capability development, evaluation and testing, sustainment, operations, training, and safety .".
