E-7A Wedges
Na ka USAF E-3G Sentry mai ka 960th AASC a me ka E-7A Wedgetail mai RAAF No. 2 i paʻi ʻia ma Kepakemapa 2019 ma Williamtown, Australia.
Ke noʻonoʻo nei ka United States Air Force (USAF) e hoʻolālā i ka mokulele Boeing E-7A Wedgetail ea ea a me ka hoʻokele mua (AEW&C) ma ke ʻano he mau hope o ka mokulele Boeing E-3G Sentry (AWACS) i kēia manawa. ʻOiai ka nui o nā polokalamu hoʻoponopono hou, hoʻonui ka ʻauwaʻa E-3G i nā kumukūʻai hana a i ka manawa like e hōʻike ana i ka loaʻa haʻahaʻa o ka hana. ʻO E-7A kahi mea ʻoi aku ka maikaʻi, ʻoi aku ka maikaʻi a me nā mea hou. Hoʻohana maikaʻi ʻia kēia mau mokulele e Australia, ka Repubalika o Korea a me Turkey. Ua kūʻai pū ʻia ka E-7A e UK, nāna i hoʻomaha i ka E-2021D (Sentry AEW.3) i Iulai 1.
I Pepeluali 2021, ua haʻi mua ʻo General Kenneth S. Wilsbach, ka luna o ka United States Pacific Air Forces (PACAF), i ka hiki ke loaʻa koke i ka E-7A e kākoʻo i nā ʻauwaʻa E-3G Sentry kahiko. I ke komo ʻana i ka lawelawe i ka makahiki 1972, ua loaʻa i ka E-3 kekahi mau papahana hoʻoponopono hou a ʻo ka hapa nui o nā ʻauwaʻa i kēia manawa ua hana ʻia nā ʻano Block 3/40 o ka E-45G. Wahi a nā hoʻolālā o ka US Air Force, me ka hoʻonui hou ʻana, pono e lawelawe ʻia ka E-3G a hiki i ka makahiki 2035. Eia nō naʻe, he 40 makahiki kēia o nā mokulele, i kūkulu ʻia ma ke kumu o ka Boeing 1977 o nā mokulele mokulele, ʻaʻole i hana ʻia mai ka makahiki 707. Aia nō naʻe ka Sentry i nā ʻenekini i ka wahie-intensive, obsolete e kū pono ʻole i nā kūlana kaiapuni o kēia wā. e like me ka Pratt & Whitney TF33-PW-100A . I loko o ka Air Force, ʻo nā mokulele B-52H Stratofortress hoʻolālā wale nō a me E-8C JSTARS reconnaissance mokulele i lako me nā ʻenekini o kēia ʻohana. Eia naʻe, ʻaʻole no ka lōʻihi, ʻoiai ua hoʻomaka mua ka papahana hoʻomaʻamaʻa B-52H, a me ka hoʻopau ʻana o ka E-8C.
He E-7A i paʻi ʻia ma ʻAukake 14, 2014, ma Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, i ka wā o ka Hae ʻulaʻula. Ua lako ka mokulele me Northrop Grumman MESA multi-mission electronic scanning radar.
ʻO nā pilikia me ka lawelawe ʻana i nā ʻenekini kahiko, ka ʻōnaehana wahie, nā mea pae ʻāina, ka mālama pono ʻana i ka fuselage, ka ʻino ʻana o ka ea, a me nā pilikia me ka loaʻa ʻana o nā ʻāpana ʻokoʻa hiki ʻole ke hana ʻia ke kumu nui o ka loaʻa ʻana o ka hana haʻahaʻa o ka E-3G. Mai 2011 a 2019, ʻaʻole i hoʻokō pinepine kēia mau mokulele i nā koi liʻiliʻi ma kēia ʻano. ʻO ka helu mākaukau o ka misionari (MCR) no ka E-2019G, E-3B a me E-3C he 3 pakeneka ma 74, e like me ka hōʻike ʻana o ka USAF. Eia nō naʻe, i ka hoʻohana ʻana i kēlā me kēia lā, hāʻule pinepine ka hiki o ka E-3G i kāna mau hana i kahi 40% weliweli.
Ke hoʻopau nei ka US Air Force i ka hoʻonui ʻana i nā ʻauwaʻa i ka maʻamau Block 40/45. Ma ke ʻano like, ke hoʻokō ʻia nei nā papahana e hoʻololi i nā keʻena a me nā ʻōnaehana kamaʻilio (e nānā i ka pahu). Ua manaʻo ʻia e lilo ka Air Force ma kahi o $2027 biliona ma kēia mau papahana e 3,4. Mai ka manaʻo kālā, ʻaʻole kēia he hoʻopukapuka maikaʻi, ʻoiai e hoʻomaka ana ka haʻalele ʻana o E-3G i kekahi mau makahiki.
I Kepakemapa 2021, ua hoʻihoʻi ʻia ka pilikia o ke kūʻai ʻana i ka E-7A i ka US Air Force a me nā ʻōlelo kauoha kiʻekiʻe. Ua ʻōlelo ʻia ua hoʻokomo ʻia ke kālā no ke kūʻai ʻana i nā kope mua i loko o ka waihona kālā no ka makahiki kālā 2023. Ma Sepatemaba 20, i ka wā o ka hui Air Force Association, ua ʻōlelo ʻo US Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall aia kekahi hoihoi i ka E-7A, nona nā mana maikaʻi loa a hiki ke hoʻohana i ka US Air Force. Ma ʻOkakopa 19, 2021, ua kauoha ka Air Force iā Boeing e hana i kahi noiʻi scoping o ka hiki o ka E-7A i kāna hoʻonohonoho kumu a e hoʻoholo ai i ka nui o nā hana a me nā hoʻololi e koi ʻia e hoʻokō i nā koi Air Force o kēia manawa. Puali Lewa ʻAmelika. Mai nā palapala i maopopo ai ka makemake o ka US Air Force i nā pilikia e like me: ke kiʻekiʻe o ka palekana cyber o nā ʻōnaehana uila ma luna o ka papa, Open Mission Systems (OMS), ka hiki ke hoʻokomo i kahi MUOS palekana (Mobile User Objective System) a me ka noise immunity. Pūnaehana hoʻokele ukali GPS M-Code ikaika.
ʻIke maikaʻi ka Air Force i ka hiki o ka E-7A ma o ka launa pū ʻana me ka Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) i ka hakakā a me nā hoʻomaʻamaʻa hui. Hoʻolele pinepine nā mea hoʻohana radar US iā Australian E-7A ma kahi hoʻololi limahana a me ke kumu hoʻomaʻamaʻa hui. Inā hoʻoholo ka USAF e kūʻai i ka E-7A, e mau ana ka nīnau i ka nui o nā mokulele e kūʻai ʻia. Inā hoʻololi loa ka E-7A i ka E-3, a laila pono e loaʻa ma kahi o 25-26 o lākou, a he 20 o lākou e mākaukau mau. Inā makemake wale ʻia nā E-7A e kākoʻo a hoʻokō i nā ʻauwaʻa E-3G, ua lawa paha ke kūʻai ʻana i kekahi mau hiʻohiʻona. ʻO ka hana ʻana i 25 mau mokulele hou a hoʻololi paha i hiki ke lawe i kekahi mau makahiki. ʻOiai inā hoʻomaka ke kālā no ka papahana i ka makahiki kālā 2023, ʻaʻole e komo ka E-7A mua i ka lawelawe a hiki i 2025-2026. ʻO ia hoʻi, ma ka liʻiliʻi loa ma ka hoʻomaka, ʻo ia hoʻi, ma ka hopena o ka lua o ka makahiki ʻelua o ke kenekulia 3, e koi ʻia ka USAF e hana i nā ʻauwaʻa hui o E-7G a me E-XNUMXG mokulele.
