The U.S. government has approved the sale of four E-7 airborne early warning and control aircraft, known as “the sky’s command post,” to South Korea. In response, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) stated that no specific model has been decided yet.
On Monday, the U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced that the U.S. State Department had approved a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) agreement to provide South Korea with four E-7 airborne early warning and control aircraft, along with related support and program elements. The total value of the agreement is approximately $4.92 billion.
The DSCA stated that the approval came in response to South Korea’s request to purchase four E-7 aircraft. The agency will soon forward the contract details to Congress for review. This sale approval process is part of the typical U.S. arms sales procedure, finalized after the Department of Defense and defense contractors negotiate with the importing country, followed by approvals from the State Department and Congress.
The South Korean Air Force currently operates four E-737 “Peace Eye” early warning aircraft. The government has determined that these four are insufficient for monitoring the entire Korean Peninsula, including North Korea. Consequently, in July 2022, the Ministry of National Defense’s Requirements Verification Committee decided to procure an additional four early warning aircraft.
The second procurement project for the Air Force’s airborne early warning and control aircraft is currently a three-way competition among the Boeing E-7A, Sweden’s Saab GlobalEye, and Israel’s IAI ELW-2085 CAEW.
A DAPA spokesperson stated, “The second procurement project for the Air Force’s airborne early warning and control aircraft is ongoing, with negotiations and evaluations currently underway with multiple vendors, and no specific model has been chosen yet.” They added, “We are committed to conducting a fair and transparent selection process and will work diligently to enhance our airborne early warning capabilities in a timely manner.”
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