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Air Force

USAF Sustainment Center Examines Reduction in AWACS Costs

Frank Wolfe

Monday, March 31st, 2025

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USAF Sustainment Center Examines Reduction in AWACS Costs

Personnel from the U.S. Air Force 961st Aircraft Maintenance Unit clear an E-3 Sentry for take-off during Exercise Cope North 24 at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam on Feb. 12, 2024 (U.S. Air Force Photo)

While the U.S. Air Force may buy 26 Boeing [BA] E-7 Wedgetails to replace its fleet of 16 1970s-era E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) planes, also by Boeing, the service is also examining how much it could save in AWACS maintenance costs. The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies recently advised the Air Force to add more than $5 billion in its fiscal 2026 budget request to buy the 26 Wedgetails to replace the 16 E-3s "in hospice care"…

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