What You Need To Know About The USAF E-3 Sentry Military Jet Radar (2024)

Designed for the United States Air Force (USAF), the E-3 Sentry is an Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) developed by Boeing. The AWACS serves as a command and control of the battle space, designed to detect and identify aircraft, ships, missiles, and other objects at long distances. Based on aerial engagements, the AWACS platform informs and directs friendly fighter and attack aircraft.

The E-3 Sentry AWACS

Derived from the Boeing 707 design, the E-3 Sentry provides all-weather surveillance, communications, command, and control. The aircraft performed its first flight in May 1976 and was introduced in March 1977.

Photo:usaf. mil | Wikimedia Commons

Besides the USAF, the Royal Saudi Air Force and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) are primary users of the type. The Royal Air Force (RAF) of the United Kingdom also operated seven E-3s between 1987 and 2020, when the last active aircraft was withdrawn from service.

General characteristics

• Length: 152 ft 11 in (46.6 m)
• Wingspan: 145 ft 9 in (44.4 m)
• Height: 41 ft 4 in (12.6 m)
• Wing area: 3,050 sq ft (283 m2)
• Empty weight: 185,000 lb (83,915 kg)
• Gross weight: 344,000 lb (156,036 kg)
• Maximum Takeoff Weight: 347,000 lb (157,397 kg)
• Powerplant: 4 × Pratt & Whitney TF33-PW-100A turbofan
• Thrust per engine: 21,500 lbf (96 kN)

Photo: USAF

This modified Boeing 707-320B design includes a rotating radar dome, also known as a rotodome. The American aircraft and defense manufacturer also updated the aircraft's hydraulic system to drive the rotodome installed on top of the fuselage. A single-point ground refueling, air refueling, and a bailout chute were other modifications to the design. The aircraft is powered by four Pratt & Whitney TF33-PW-100A turbofan engines, each generating 21,500 lbf (96 kN) of takeoff thrust.

Battle space surveillance

Crew

• Flight crew: Four: Aircraft Commander, Pilot, Navigator, and Flight Engineer
• Mission crew: 13–19

Boeing's E-3 Sentry serves as an integrated command and control battle management (C2BM), providing efficient detection and tracking of targets. According to theAir Force,

“The aircraft provides an accurate, real-time picture of the battlespace to the Joint Air Operations Center. AWACS provides situational awareness of friendly, neutral and hostile activity, command and control of an area of responsibility, battle management of theater forces, all-altitude and all-weather surveillance of the battle space, and early warning of enemy actions during joint, allied, and coalition operations.”

Photo: USAF

Air Forces can deploy the AWACS alone or horizontally integrated with other intelligence platforms to aid in complex surveillance and reconnaissance missions. The aircraft supports air combat or air tasking orders with a unique ability to find and target airborne or maritime threats. Using the location and identification emitters, the E-3 Sentry can identify and control assets. Enemy aircraft information can be exchanged with other control platforms using secure datalinks.

The Rotodome

• Diameter: 30 ft (9.1 m)
• Thickness: 6 ft (1.8 m)
• Height: 11 ft (3.3 m)

A rotodome is a weather-proof enclosed structure protecting a radar antenna. The commercial Boeing 707-300 airframe is modified with a 30 ft (9.1 m) diameter rotodome above the fuselage. Fixed in place with two struts, the rotodome provides surveillance over land or water from the surface to the stratosphere. With a range of 220 nautical miles, the radar can easily detect airborne or ground objects. According to the Air Force,

“The radar has a range of more than 250 miles (375.5 kilometers). The radar combined with an identification friend or foe, or IFF, subsystem can look down to detect, identify and track enemy and friendly low-flying aircraft by eliminating ground clutter returns that confuse other radar systems.”

Photo: USAF

Between 1987 and 2007, the USAF ordered various upgrades to its E-3 Sentry fleet. Boeing's Block 30/35 Modification Program of the AWACS included various upgrades:

• Active and passive detection received ESM and an electronic surveillance capability.
• Joint Tactical Information Distribution System (JTIDS) provides secure and rapid communication for information transmission, including identification data and target locations, to other friendly platforms.
• Global Positioning System (GPS) capability.
• Onboard computers were overhauled to accommodate JTIDS, Link-16, and new ESM systems. The computers also allowed flexibility and adaptability for future enhancements.

Performance

• Maximum speed: 461 knots (531 mph, 854 km/h)
• Cruise speed: 310 knots (360 mph, 580 km/h) optimum
• Operational Range: 4,000 NM (4,600 mi, 7,400 km)
• Endurance: more than eight hours without refueling
• Service ceiling: 29,000 ft (8,800 m) minimum

Photo: USAF

The AWACS platform has extraordinary performance characteristics, including maximum speed, operational range, and in-flight endurance. The aircraft is capable of over eight hours of endurance without aerial refueling; of course, its operational range and endurance can be increased through in-flight refueling. The E-3's performance characteristics increase its chances of survival compared to ground-based radar systems. Moreover, the Sentry's flight path can quickly be altered based on mission requirements.

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