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Boeing completes US Awacs upgrade testing |
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Monday, 15 September 2008 |
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Boeing has completed mission system flight testing for a new upgrade to the US Awacs fleet.
The Boeing Company has announced completion of mission system flight testing for Block 40/45, the largest ever upgrade to the US E-3 airborne warning and control system (Awacs) fleet.
According to the aerospace and defence company, the upgrade - which was tested by Boeing and the US Air Force out between April 2007 and July 2008 - involved replacing legacy mainframe systems on the aircraft.
Stu Oliason, 40/45 system design and development programme manager for Boeing, explained: "Test data indicate the Block 40/45 system meets or exceeds all its key performance parameters and technical performance requirements.
"We're all very excited about bringing this new capability to the warfighter," he added, explaining that the improved computing power of the upgraded aircraft helps automate what is currently a manually intensive workload for Awacs operators.
Boeing explained that the new mainframe system is capable of detecting and identifying targets, prioritising outgoing tasks via the new data link infrastructure, and providing simplified display units that provide rapid access to a multitude of information.
Early last month, British Airways signed a new contract with the aviation company for two Boeing 777-300ER (extended range) jetliners, valued at $529 million (£294 million) based on current list prices.
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