Boeing E-3 Sentry

E-3 Sentry
An E-3 Sentry of the United States Air Force
General information
Type	Airborne early warning and control (AEW&C)
National origin	United States
Manufacturer	Boeing Defense, Space & Security
Status	In service
Primary users	United States Air Force NATO Royal Air Force (retired) Royal Saudi Air Force
Number built	68
History
Manufactured	1977–1992
Introduction date	March 1977
First flight	EC-137D: 9 February 1972 E-3: 25 May 1976[1]
Developed from	Boeing 707

The Boeing E-3 Sentry is an American airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft developed by Boeing. E-3s are commonly known as AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System). Derived from the Boeing 707 airliner, it provides all-weather surveillance, command, control, and communications, and is used by the United States Air Force, NATO, French Air and Space Force, Royal Saudi Air Force and Chilean Air Force. The E-3 has a distinctive rotating radar dome (rotodome) above the fuselage. Production ended in 1992 after 68 aircraft had been built.

In the mid-1960s, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) was seeking an aircraft to replace its piston-engined Lockheed EC-121 Warning Star, which had been in service for over a decade. After issuing preliminary development contracts to three companies, the USAF picked Boeing to construct two airframes to test Westinghouse Electric's and Hughes's competing radars. Both radars used pulse-Doppler technology, with Westinghouse's design emerging as the contract winner. Testing on the first production E-3 began in October 1975.

The first USAF E-3 was delivered in March 1977, and during the next seven years, a total of 34 aircraft were manufactured. E-3s were also purchased by NATO (18), the United Kingdom (7), France (4) and Saudi Arabia (5). In 1991, when the last aircraft had been delivered, E-3s participated in the Persian Gulf War, playing a crucial role of directing coalition aircraft against Iraqi forces.

The aircraft was also the last of the Boeing 707 derivatives after 34 years of continuous production. The aircraft's capabilities have been maintained and enhanced through numerous upgrades. In 1996, Westinghouse Electric's Defense & Electronic Systems division was acquired by Northrop Corporation, before being renamed Northrop Grumman Mission Systems, which currently supports the E-3's radar. In April 2022, the U.S. Air Force announced that the Boeing E-7 is to replace the E-3 beginning in 2027.^[2]