On September 20, the inaugural flight of the UK E-7 Wedgetail from Birmingham Airport took place, and it is a significant milestone in the test and evaluation phase of the program. Boeing flight-test crew conducted functional checks.
The aircraft, which is currently unpainted, is one of three 737 NG aircraft that are currently undergoing modification by a team of over 100 individuals at STS Aviation Services in Birmingham.
Stu Voboril, Boeing vice president and E-7 program manager, emphasized that this functional check flight is a critical milestone for the RAF and Boeing as part of the company’s rigorous and comprehensive testing and evaluation.
Group Captain Richard Osselton, the RAF Programme Director for Wedgetail, stated that the first flight of Wedgetail is a significant milestone, representing an outstanding effort from the RAF program team, DE&S, Boeing, and STS Aviation. He stated that the RAF will now capitalize on this achievement and anticipate continuing the Test & Evaluation phase as part of the aircraft’s entry into service.
The E-7’s Multi-role Electronically Scanned Array (MESA) sensor can find and identify enemy targets from a long way away. It can also track multiple airborne and maritime threats at the same time, providing full 360-degree coverage. It offers the warfighter a critical command-and-control decision advantage and multi-domain awareness.
Boeing’s local suppliers and contractors are in the process of finalizing the infrastructure facilities necessary to support the induction of the future UK E-7 fleet to service at RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland.
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is a member of a trilateral agreement with the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and the United States Air Force (USAF) to promote cooperative Wedgetail interoperability, capability development, evaluation and testing, sustainment, operations, training, and safety.
The E-7 is presently in service with the Republic of Korea Air Force, the RAAF, and the Turkish Air Force. NATO selected the E-7 for its AEW&C mission in 2023, and Boeing is currently constructing two rapid prototype E-7 aircraft for the USAF. The expanding global E-7 fleet offers a common technical growth path to remain ahead of global threats, as well as advantages in mission readiness, lifecycle cost, and interoperability of mission systems.
The aircraft will be moved to a paint facility to receive its RAF livery later this autumn, following a series of flight tests and additional evaluations.
