Plan to replace AWACS Jet with Hawkeye

HELLFIRE

Space-based radar can be everywhere, puts no aircrew at risk, and can be immediate. Also, with rapidly advancing launch capabilities, assets can be put on orbit quickly, leveraging commercial launch capability.

Nice bit of marketing fluff that – and I fully admit this is my John Lawton counterpoint – I wonder if it fully considers the (possible) downsides :

satellites have known orbits and orbital periods – “typical” LEO has 90minute orbital 16 times a day, source : https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2020/03/Low_Earth_orbit
crowding of LEO.
how good is a satellite’s payload-to-fuel ratio in comparison? – for every pound / kilo you want / need to get up there, you have to ditch a pound / kilo elsewhere.
in near-peer competitions against an opponent with well-developed counter-satellite capabilities and measures, what then?
what actual capabilites does this system (not) have exactly? As pointed out by the Umbra link and the 2nd TWZ article, SBR isn’t anything new, I’ll grant that, but it’s primarily for imaging purposes. Not really useful if you want to track / hand off / shoot / kill something. “Kill Chain” I believe is the term in vogue in the military these days.
how good / reliable is the launch method exactly? “Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly,” anyone?

shrugs and “We Can Only See….”

Regards

HELLFIRE

FWIW : https://www.twz.com/space/track-moving-aircraft-via-radar-satellites-instead-of-surveillance-jets-still-far-from-reality – Tracking Moving Aircraft Via Radar Satellites Instead Of Surveillance Jets Still Far From Reality

… “I think the important part here is the [space-based AMTI] alternative analysis of alternatives that will be delivered this fall… are [sic] going to be very telling. As I said earlier, we believe it’s multiple phenomenologies,” Burt explained. “There’s no one silver bullet of a phenomenology that’s going to do this. It’s going to require a variety of phenomenology.” … and the data being provided machine-to-machine to compare different phenomenologies, to be able to say, ‘okay, that is an air moving target.’ And how would I then pass it to a combat controller working with aircraft or directly to the cockpit as needed.” …

Can’t say I ever heard the word “phenomenology” before, so here’s a dictionary.com definition : https://www.dictionary.com/browse/phenomenology

Otherwise, sounds like standard “pie in the sky” type stuff funded by a budget with ALOT of zeroes after it and not much (more) substance, actual hardware and/or demonstration behind it.

My Cynical 00000010bits

Regards

HELLFIRE

https://en.defence-ua.com/industries/us_reverses_decision_restores_e_7_wedgetail_awacs_program_due_to_lack_of_alternatives-16455.html – U.S. Reverses Decision Restores E-7 Wedgetail AWACS Program Due to Lack of Alternatives (Nov 11)

United States has ultimately decided to reverse its own decision and restore the E-7 Wedgetail AWACS aircraft program, as there are essentially no alternatives. … According to a publicly available document, $200 million will be allocated for this purpose. …

https://www.twz.com/air/e-7-wedgetail-radar-jet-plans-axed-by-nato-nations – E-7 Wedgetail Radar Jet Procurement Plans Axed By NATO

The Dutch Ministry of Defense has announced that NATO nations have dropped their plan to buy Boeing E-7A Wedgetail as the alliance’s next airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) platform. The decision comes after South Korea rejected the E-7 for its own AEW&C program and would appear to open the NATO door to Saab’s rival GlobalEye, which France has already said it intends to buy … increasingly, the U.S. Air Force has viewed the E-7 as a solution to bridge the gap between the retirement of its own aging E-3s and a future space-based radar capability and other classified systems … the sudden emergence of Russian drones as a threat within NATO airspace has further underscored the value of AEW&C assets, which have a critical look-down capability against uncrewed air vehicles as well as cruise missiles. …

FWIW.

Regards

Dks01

px_eliezer_ The failure of the Revolt of the Admirals led to the Strategic Air Command, the B-36 and B-52 and much of where we are today.

Dks01

HELLFIRE The Saab GlobalEye has been chosen by France to replace their E-3F aircraft. The GlobalEye is built on a known and proven aircraft design, the Canadian (now Mitsubishi) Bombardier 6000/6500. Saab is proposing to build parts of the GlobalEye and Gripen in Canada. There may be an announcement soon, given the level of negotiation and soft power expression being seen in Canada right now. It is possible that Canada may even dump the F-35 (sucks to be Lockheed) and buy the Gripen or go to a blended force of the F-35 for territorial defense and the Gripen for tactical support operations such as NATO. Canada did that before with the CF-101D VooDoo for NORAD, the CF-104 Starfighter for nuclear attack and strategic reconnaissance and the the CF-5A for tactical support. Canada is planning to wean itself, at least partially, from the US-dependent military tit.

dave

HELLFIRE Can’t say I ever heard the word “phenomenology” before

There’s a good tutorial you should watch – the movie Dark Star by John Carpenter :-)

telcodad

dave There’s a good tutorial you should watch – the movie Dark Staren.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Star_%28film%29No preview could be generated for this link by John Carpenter :-)

LOL, I love that movie!

“… it’s time for Sergeant Pinback to feed the alien.”

digitalfutur

Dks01 Another USA self-own: Most if not all G20 countries long-term won’t buy made in America hardware because it is. Public policy doesn’t operate in a vacuum.

HELLFIRE

https://www.twz.com/air/e-7-wedgetail-radar-jet-program-cancellation-reversal-advances-in-congress – Lawmakers are pushing back on Pentagon plans to buy E-2 Hawkeyes instead of E-7s, as the Air Force looks to push more capabilities into space.

… The latest draft of the annual defense policy bill also includes language that would compel the U.S. Air Force to keep all 16 of its remaining E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) jets in service until a sufficient number of Wedgetails are delivered or other conditions are met. … Though the U.S. Navy and other E-2 operators have employed those aircraft from bases on land, the Hawkeye was designed around the unique requirements and constraints of carrier-based operations. …

Also of note from the article is that the Air Force doesn’t expect to have orbital-based tracking capability till the early 2030s, and that traditional AWACS will continue to be used afterwards.

Regards

HELLFIRE

https://www.twz.com/air/e-7-wedgetail-radar-jet-the-pentagon-tried-to-cancel-gets-over-1b-in-new-defense-bill – E-7 Wedgetail Radar Jet The Pentagon Tried To Cancel Gets Over $1B In New Defense Bill

A new draft defense spending bill making its way through Congress seeks to boost funding for the U.S. Air Force’s E-7 Wedgetail airborne early warning and control aircraft to $1.1 billion for the current fiscal year. … This underscores the changing fortunes of the E-7 program, which the Pentagon had sought to cancel last year. …

https://en.defence-ua.com/industries/zero_radar_activity_and_only_four_flights_a_year_whats_going_wrong_with_britains_e_7_wedgetail_aewc_aircraft-17216.html – Zero Radar Activity and Only Four Flights a Year: What’s Going Wrong with Britain’s E-7 Wedgetail AEW&C Aircraft?

The Royal Air Force’s Boeing E-7 Wedgetail AEW&C aircraft, locally designated AEW1, has flown just four times throughout 2025. Notably, its radar has not been activated even once during this period. …

Regards

[deleted]

So much for panic and dire predictions.

For those interested, a look at military comparisons:

a href=“https://www.globalfirepower.com/countries-comparison-detail.php?country1=united-states-of-america&country2=canada”> U.S. v GWN </a>

It has been a long time since I used HTML regularly, but this is not parsing the way I think it should have. Perhaps this site utilises XHTML…

broknsymetry

[deleted]

[ U.S. v GWN ](https://www.globalfirepower.com/countries-comparison-detail.php?country1=united-states-of-america&country2=canada)

U.S. v GWN

Flarum uses BBCode. Easiest to either select the full link, click the “link” button on the toolbar and add text descriptor or vice-a-versa.

Kathy_9

broknsymetry or just copy & paste the link.

https://www.globalfirepower.com/countries-comparison-detail.php?country1=united-states-of-america&country2=canada

[deleted]

broknsymetry

Another reason why Flarum sucks. It is possible to use HTML or XHTML with a forum; Beehive does it very simply with an editor.

[deleted]

Kathy_9

The Rule of Recency is why I don’t Copy and Paste links. Years ago, forums would complain about long links, so many of us used HTML to have a single word to point to an article. Others used Tiny URL to do it, but learning new things is never a
Bad Thing.

The problem with BBCode as it relates to Flarum, is Flarum does not support special characters.

HELLFIRE

Placing here rather than the other Iranian thread due to it specifically referring to the E-3 / E-7 : https://www.twz.com/air/massive-leap-in-ability-to-spot-iranian-drones-headed-to-persian-gulf – Massive Leap In Ability To Spot Iranian Drones Headed To Persian Gulf

… For years now, the U.S. E-3 fleet, overall, has struggled with readiness issues, which you can read more about here. As an aside, the strain on the E-3 fleet, now magnified by the current conflict, together with Australia’s deployment of an E-7 to the region, makes the Pentagon’s attempt last year to cancel the U.S. Air Force’s Wedgetail program seem even more bizarrely short-sighted. …

Regards

HELLFIRE

https://www.twz.com/air/pentagons-mindset-on-e-7-radar-aircraft-it-tried-to-axe-has-completely-changed-hegseth – Pentagon’s Mindset On E-7 Radar Aircraft It Tried To Axe Has Completely Changed

… but there is no other realistic source available for a replacement E-3, the very last of which were delivered in the early 1990s. As it stands now, the Pentagon and the Air Force look to have fully dropped their opposition to moving ahead with fielding the already sorely needed fleet of new E-7s.

FWIW.

Regards

Dks01

The E-7 is not the only game in town. Canada is looking at the E-7 and more likely the Saab GlobalEye, based on the Canadian manufactured Bombardier 6500 business jet. This may also be tied to the F-35/Gripen fighter decision.

https://defence-industry.eu/canada-weighs-saab-boeing-and-l3harris-early-warning-aircraft-for-future-surveillance-fleet/

Dks01

NATO has already selected the GlobalEye.

https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/article/canadian-company-in-the-running-for-a-massive-new-nato-purchase-reports/

HELLFIRE

https://www.twz.com/air/in-an-ironic-turn-of-events-white-house-wants-to-raid-navy-e-2-account-to-pay-for-usaf-e-7s – In An Ironic Turn Of Events, White House Wants To Raid Navy E-2 Account To Pay For USAF E-7s

… In something of a twist, the Pentagon has proposed cutting U.S. Navy E-2D purchases, as well as raiding a classified Air Force account, to keep the E-7 program going. … Defense News drew specific attention to the new jostling over funding for the E-7 in a report earlier today. …

From the linked Defense News article : https://www.defensenews.com/news/pentagon-congress/2026/06/25/house-backs-155-billion-to-revive-e-7-wedgetail-spares-navy-hawkeye/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=tw_dfn

… OMB carved about $651 million from the Navy account that buys the E-2D Hawkeye and $899 million from the Air Force’s other procurement account. … The money would “deliver two E-7 Wedgetail prototype aircraft and continue Engineering Manufacturing and Development activities for a program of record.” …

If I am not mistaken, is that also known as “Robbing Peter To Pay Paul?”

/sarcasm

Regards

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