11/12/07
DEFENSE NEWS
Dubai Air Show
Boeing Shows Off Turkish Air Force 737 AEW&C Aircraft
By WENDELL MINNICK and PIERRE TRAN
The AEW&C aircraft has begun development flight-testing, said Craig Fish, Boeing’s 737 AEW&C United Arab Emirates chief engineer. The plane on display is the first of four ordered by Turkey and is undergoing modification by Turkish Aerospace Industry, a local partner on the program.
The militarized 737 carries a Northrop Grumman multimission electronically scanned array (MESA), whose short fin on the fuselage handles radar and identification-friend-or-foe functions. The radar, which is interoperable with U.S. and coalition forces, can track targets while maintaining a 360-degree lookout for aircraft and ships, said Mark Ellis, Boeing’s Peace Eagle program manager.
The contract for the Turkey Peace Eagle program was signed November 2006. Export has been approved by the U.S. Congress. The first functional flight check was completed in August, the first mission system flight test was completed in October, and the system functional checkout of aircraft one is proceeding in Seattle. Modifications to the remaining three aircraft are under way at the TAI facility in Ankara, Ellis said.
The U.S. government approved the export license for the South Korean aircraft in July, subcontract placement was finalized in September, and the supplier kickoff meeting and program management review were in August.
“We are getting ready for our second [program management review],” Ellis said. The program will begin initial requirement review in December. Delivery of the first aircraft is scheduled in 2011, and the final three in 2012.
