Boeing has secured a contract worth $50 million to modernise the Royal Saudi Air Force's E-3A airborne warning and control system (AWACS) fleet.
Detailed by the US Department of Defense in a 14 December contract notification, the deal covers the provision and installation of Radar System Improvement Program (RSIP) kits for Riyadh's five 707-based E-3As. The work will increase the detection capability and range of the system's main Northrop Grumman APY-1 sensor and provide increased protection against jamming activities.
Modification and check-out work will be performed at Boeing's Seattle site in Washington, with the DoD saying the project should be completed by October 2013.
Saudi Arabia follows other E-3 AWACS operators France, the UK, the USA and NATO in ordering the RSIP enhancement for their surveillance fleets. Its aircraft have also previously been the subject of a major communications upgrade, with this having included the addition of a Link 16 data link to enable operators to transfer realtime information to other military assets.
Source: Flight International
