11 NATO allies, including Romania, announced on Tuesday, during the Defense Industry Forum organized on the occasion of the NATO Summit in Ankara, the joint acquisition of Saab GlobalEye aircraft, which will constitute the new NATO Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS).
This decision represents a significant step in modernizing NATO’s aerial surveillance and early warning capabilities, by replacing a portion of the Alliance’s outdated Boeing E-3 aircraft fleet. The GlobalEye system will provide advanced, multi-domain surveillance in the air, land, and maritime spaces, from a single platform. It will offer enhanced capabilities for detecting and tracking complex threats, including drone swarms, ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles.
The aircraft will strengthen NATO’s situational awareness and support operations. The project is an example of close transatlantic industrial cooperation, led by the European and Canadian industry, with significant contributions from American companies. In parallel, eight allies have also launched a new cooperation project to operationalize early warning air capabilities, in order to meet their national requirements.
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