US Air Force Staff Sgt. Ian Mclain, 2 Squadron E-7A Wedgetail Avionics technician, marshals an aircraft for a flight at Royal Australian Air Force Base Darwin, Australia, 17 July 2024. Credit: DVIDS.

The rapid protoyping of two US Air Force (USAF) E-7A Wedgetail airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft will set the tone for the global platform.

US aerospace prime Boeing, and the original equipment manufacturer of the Wedgetail, will produce the protoypes in an effort to definitise the USAF programme under a contract modification valued at more than $2.5bn.

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Work will take place in Tukwila, Washington, and is expected to be completed by 28 August 2029.

The US has already begun to prepare their forces for the incorporation of the Wedgetail for some time. The service has worked closely with partner nations to achieve this readiness. From as early as November 2023, Nato gave the green light for the production of six units, anticipating their induction by 2031.

At the time of approval, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg underscored the importance of AEW&C aircraft: “Surveillance and control aircraft are crucial for Nato’s collective defence, and I welcome Allies’ commitment to investing in high-end capabilities.”

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Currently, Boeing says that the E-7A is in service or on contract with Australia, South Korea, Turkey and the UK, adding that “integration in future coalition operations is a distinct advantage.”

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Since 2022, US Air Force personnel were embedded into the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) 2 Squadron,  a Wedgetail unit, through the Military Personnel Exchange Program. This will help to prepare the USAF ahead of the replacement of the existing E-3 Sentry fleet.

An RAAF E-7A Wedgetail prepares to land while USAF F-35A Lighting IIs prepare to take off on Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, 11 August 2021. RAAF personnel visited Alaska in 2019 to participate in RF-A 19-3, before the 354th Fighter Wing accepted its first F-35As. Credit: DVIDS.

GlobalData intelligence indicates that the RAAF operate six Wedgetail units, having acquired them between 2009-15.

“Global operators are proving that the E-7 is a critical node for air superiority in the modern battlespace,” said Boeing Vice President and E-7 program manager Stu Voboril.

Meanwhile, the existing USAF AEW&C fleet is an ageing relic of the late Cold War. Among its inventory, 31 E-3 units were procured between 1977-80 while two E-9As entered service in 1988.

Built on the Boeing 737-700 NG airframe, the E-7A offers lower operating and sustainment costs, higher mission readiness rates and interoperability among a growing global user community. It provides targeted tracking and battle management command-and-control capabilities to joint forces for “first to detect, first to engage” advantage.