[By Guancha Observer, Shanmao]

According to a report from The War Zone, a website of The Drive, the US Air Force is currently in a predicament with its future airborne early warning command system, and the new defense spending plan from the Trump administration has undergone "significant policy changes." The number of current E-3 airborne early warning aircraft has sharply decreased, and the fleet faces maintenance challenges due to aging. Originally, the US Air Force decided to develop and procure self-use E-7 based on the mature E-737 Wedgetail model previously exported to multiple allied countries to fill the gap left by the retirement of E-3 until the future "distributed space-based early warning constellation" matures. However, in the latest government plan, the E-7 project may be canceled, replaced instead by the E-2D currently used by the US Navy.

(Source photo) US Navy E-2D airborne early warning aircraft formation - US Navy

The report disclosed this major policy change on June 11 at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing where Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General John Kayne, and Special Assistant to the Secretary of Defense Brian Woolacott McDonnell testified. McDonnell also holds the position of Deputy Secretary of Defense and Chief Financial Officer of the Pentagon.

In 2023, the US Air Force announced the purchase of 26 E-7A airborne early warning aircraft to replace the aging E-3 fleet. At that time, the US Air Force had 31 E-3 aircraft in various states of readiness, but 15 of them began retiring in 2023. By the end of 2024, the size of the US Air Force E-3 fleet was reduced to only 16 aircraft.

(Source photo) US Air Force E-7A conceptual image

Senator Lisa Murkowski from Alaska raised questions about the future development of the US Air Force's airborne early warning and command aircraft force during the hearing. Murkowski focused her inquiry on the severe aging of the E-3 fleet. She stated that Alaska, as the frontline of North American air defense, already faced a very tense defensive posture. With the budget halting the E-7 project, in light of frequent Russian aircraft approaching, Alaska's fighters, tankers, and early warning aircraft need regular flights to track and intercept these targets. However, the aging E-3 fleet has become nearly incapacitated. Although the Pentagon promised to transition to a space-based early warning detection system, the reality is that there are no more means to maintain the existing system effectively before these systems are deployed. Therefore, how to maintain readiness and surveillance coverage levels is also in doubt.

(Source photo) An E-3A during the "Red Flag - Alaska 23-1" Air Force exercise - US Air Force

Joint Chiefs Chairman Kayne responded by saying that the airborne early warning command system centered around the E-3 fleet has played a significant role in US air defense security for a long time. Therefore, according to the recommendation of Chief Financial Officer McDonnell, the Pentagon is adopting a "bridge strategy" to acquire other airborne platforms to fill the gap before the space-based capabilities mature. McDonnell then stated that this requires the E-2D to play a role, with $150 million allocated in the 2026 fiscal year budget to form a "Joint Expeditionary Squadron" consisting of five E-2Ds. Additionally, $1.4 billion was allocated to purchase additional units to fill recent capability gaps. In response to Senator Murkowski's question about "what impact this decision will have on Alaska's air defense," Hegseth said that it was indeed a difficult decision because the E-7 project was "severely over budget and technologically outdated." In contrast, using the E-2D temporarily and accelerating the deployment of the space-based system is "the best approach after balancing all factors." During a House Appropriations Committee hearing on the 10th, Hegseth also stated that the E-7 "does not have survivability on modern battlefields," so the focus would be to provide funds to upgrade and modernize "stronger existing platforms."

According to the original plan, the first two E-7A prototype aircraft were scheduled to begin production in the 2025 fiscal year, which is this year, and would reach initial operational capability and enter service in 2027. A report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) revealed that US Air Force officials stated they planned to start production of the mass-production models in the second quarter of 2026, meaning that the mass-production aircraft would be built concurrently with the prototypes to offset delays related to aircraft manufacturing and subsequent modifications.

Since signing the contract with Boeing, Boeing has postponed the first flight test node for the E-7A prototype to May 2027, a delay of nine months from the original schedule. The report stated that Air Force officials cited "critical safety architecture changes" as the reason for the delay, including procurement, certification testing, and corresponding modifications to the aircraft. In August 2024, the US Air Force signed an amended rapid prototyping production contract with Boeing. Under this $2.56 billion contract, the delivery of "two operationally capable E-7A prototypes" was set for the 2028 fiscal year. According to GAO's assessment report, due to additional engineering and research content such as software and aircraft subsystems, the total acquisition cost increased by 33%. The US Air Force has consistently stated publicly that they encountered difficulties finalizing the prototype aircraft contract with Boeing. On the other hand, a contract released earlier this year by the US Air Force indicated that the so-called "production representative prototype" (RP) may still have significant differences from the final full-production version, including possible replacement of the radar. Currently, the export version of the E-737/E-7 uses the "Multirole Electronically Scanned Array" (MESA) radar assembly developed by Northrop Grumman. In short, due to the US Air Force's unwillingness to accept the configuration of the export version E-7 and their desire to significantly modify and increase the functionality and components onboard, the aircraft has been repeatedly delayed.

Regarding the decision to abandon the E-7 and transition to the E-2D, it has raised many questions from outside observers, such as how many E-2Ds will be required to replace the existing 16 E-3 aircraft. The E-2D has undergone numerous optimizations for carrier-based operations, but this has resulted in a much smaller aircraft than the E-3 and E-7. The crew consists of only five people, including two pilots, and cannot accommodate additional personnel needed for highly complex combat missions and tasks beyond traditional early warning operations. The aircraft itself lacks expandability, although some of the onboard personnel requirements can be partially mitigated through high-bandwidth data links; the cruising speed and range of the E-2 are far less than those of the E-3 and E-7, requiring longer flight times during deployments. Its lower altitude results in a relatively smaller radar and electronic system coverage area, limiting target monitoring distance and resolution, and requiring more sorties for the same airspace. Despite the advanced AN/APY-9 radar system onboard, many advanced features and data fusion relay equipment are configured to match the naval system, so either these systems will need to be removed or they will remain idle in US Air Force missions, while replacing them with other systems would require more funding and time. Additionally, the aerial refueling capability of the E-2 was only recently achieved and uses the cone-and-drogue method of the US Navy, which differs from the probe-and-drogue method widely used by the US Air Force. Although the new KC-46 tanker of the US Air Force comes equipped with a drogue-and-cone refueling pod, and the KC-135R can accommodate naval aircraft through adapters, this undoubtedly produces an undeniable impact on daily operations support.

The hard probe of the US Air Force KC-135 can refuel naval aircraft through the addition of an "adapter," but this also results in the loss of refueling capability for other Air Force aircraft.

However, the report expressed a "saving face" sentiment by stating that sharing a common early warning aircraft with the US Navy might help reduce costs and possibly benefit the future development of the E-2D. The compact E-2D can be flexibly deployed in "harsh combat areas" with limited runway lengths without sacrificing operational effectiveness, although its compactness and light weight come at the cost of reduced combat effectiveness compared to larger early warning aircraft.

The report also mentioned that these adjustments still require approval from the US Congress. Based on the current situation, the US Air Force is undergoing quite significant adjustments when facing increasingly urgent demands for airborne early warning aircraft.

This article is an exclusive piece from Guancha Observer and unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7515007675403485705/

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