ESC awards contract to upgrade Saudi AWACS aircraft

Published July 23, 2010
By Patty Welsh
66th Air Base Group Public Affairs

HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. -- The Airborne Early Warning and Control International Branch of the Electronic Systems Center here recently awarded a $73 million contract to Boeing Integrated Defense Systems in Seattle to enhance and improve capabilities for the Royal Saudi Air Force's fleet of E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft.

"This foreign military sales contract is for the Radar System Improvement Program, which is a battle-proven operational capability," said Ann Choi, deputy program manager. "The contract moves us into Phase II-A -- the production phase."

The RSIP will provide increased operational flexibility, enhanced radar performance and improved abilities to respond to electronic attacks.

The improvements will also increase radar system reliability and sustainability.

"If this upgrade is not completed, the Royal Saudi Air Force could have trouble maintaining the system or obtaining spare parts," said Bill Corcoran, RSIP project lead.

Phase I was awarded in May 2009 and included design and planning. It runs through November 2010.

Phase II-A, which runs through January 2014, includes the RSIP kit production, technical publications, installation and check-out training development and conduct, spares and spares provisioning analysis, and test planning.

The RSIP kit will include a new radar computer, a radar-control maintenance panel and software upgrades for the radar and mission-system programs.

"The RSIP was the first major improvement to the AWACS radar system since the aircraft was fielded in the 1970s and the U.S./NATO development effort for it was completed in the 1990s," said Ms. Choi. "Once the improvement upgrade for the Saudis is complete, it will ensure all AWACS users are on the same page in terms of capability and interoperability."

The NATO AWACS fleet was the first to have the radar system modification completed, and since then the United States, the United Kingdom and France have all received the modification. Japan's AWACS fleet is also being upgraded with RSIP.

RSIP installation and check-out for the Saudi aircraft is scheduled to begin in late 2012. The first installation will occur at Boeing's Seattle facility. The remaining installations are scheduled to be performed at the Al-Salam Aircraft Co. in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and all are expected to be complete by early 2016.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia procured its five E-3 AWACS aircraft as part of a program called "Peace Sentinel" in 1981. The aircraft deliveries occurred between 1986 and 1988.