The Boeing 737 AEW&C; is an Airborne Early Warning & Control aircraft. It is about half the weight and has half the engines of the 707-based E-3 Sentry, and mounts a fixed, electronically scanned, rather than a rotating radar antenna. It was designed in response to Australia's RFP for an aircraft for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) as Project Wedgetail. The 737 AEW&C; has also been selected by the Turkish Air Force (under Project Peace Eagl...
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The Boeing 737 AEW&C; is an Airborne Early Warning & Control aircraft. It is about half the weight and has half the engines of the 707-based E-3 Sentry, and mounts a fixed, electronically scanned, rather than a rotating radar antenna. It was designed in response to Australia's RFP for an aircraft for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) as Project Wedgetail. The 737 AEW&C; has also been selected by the Turkish Air Force (under Project Peace Eagle, Turkish: Barış Kartalı) and the Republic of Korea Air Force (Project Peace Eye), and has been proposed to Italy and the UAE.
The aircraft uses the Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems Multi-role Electronically Scanned Array (MESA) radar. The radar is located on a dorsal fin on top of the fuselage, dubbed the "top hat", and is designed for minimal aerodynamic effect. The radar is capable of simultaneous air and sea search, fighter control and area search. Other modifications include ventral fins to counterbalance the radar and countermeasures...
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