Mon, Nov 30, 2009
Boeing has delivered the first two Project Wedgetail 737
Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) aircraft to the
Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The aircraft were delivered
during a ceremony at RAAF Base Williamtown, the main operating base
for the Wedgetail fleet. Attending the ceremony were officials from
the RAAF, the Defence Materiel Organisation and Boeing.
Delivery of the two aircraft and utilization of the
Boeing-provided Operational Flight Trainer, Operational Mission
Simulator and Mission Support System allow the RAAF to begin
familiarization training for flight, mission and maintenance crews.
The trainer and the simulator are located at the Williamtown base's
AEW&C Support Centre.
Three additional Wedgetail aircraft will be delivered to the
RAAF by the end of 2010, including one upgraded in the final
AEW&C configuration with Electronic Support Measures (ESM). All
aircraft in the Wedgetail fleet will be upgraded in the final
configuration in early 2011.
"Project Wedgetail represents a fundamental shift in airborne
surveillance technology. Australia is leading the way with the most
capable electronically scanned air surveillance radar and battle
management system in the world," said Maureen Dougherty, Boeing
vice president of the Airborne Early Warning and Control Program.
"The worldwide surveillance marketplace has taken notice of
Wedgetail's progress, and we're working with several customers to
define their future requirements."
Project Wedgetail includes six 737 AEW&C aircraft plus
ground support segments for mission crew training, mission support
and system maintenance. Based on the Boeing Next-Generation 737-700
commercial airplane, the 737 AEW&C aircraft is designed to
provide airborne battle-management capability with an advanced
multirole electronically scanned radar and 10 state-of-the-art
mission crew consoles that are able to track airborne and maritime
targets simultaneously. The mission crew can direct offensive and
defensive forces while maintaining continuous surveillance of the
operational area.
Boeing also has AEW&C systems in production for Turkey and
the Republic of Korea.
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