FARNBOROUGH, England, July 17, 2006 -- The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] has conducted a successful first test flight of an Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft upgraded under the Block 40/45 program, the largest enhancement in the history of the U.S. Air Force E-3 AWACS fleet.
During the three-hour flight on July 15, pilots performed a series of compatibility tests between the upgrades and the aircraft's systems and structures.
The airworthiness flight test program is scheduled for 24 flights over the next few months. Phase two of the program will include flight testing the Block 40/45 mission system.
Under the Block 40/45 program, Boeing outfitted the Test System 3 (TS-3) AWACS test aircraft with new mission computing hardware and software, upgraded radar equipment, and navigation and communications systems.
These enhancements are designed to increase the aircraft's capability through improved automation and human computer interface, reliability and lowered lifecycle costs. These upgrades make AWACS a prime catalyst for network-enabled capability and an extraordinary force multiplier across the entire operational theater.
The modifications are based on prototype hardware and software successfully demonstrated on TS-3 during risk reductions efforts.
Based on a Boeing 707-320B airframe, the E-3 AWACS provides surveillance, command-and-control, and communications functions for tactical and defensive missions. In service since 1977, it is used by the U.S. Air Force, NATO, United Kingdom, France and Saudi Arabia.