Chinese Navy's Z-18J AEW (AWACS) Helicopter Unveiled

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E-2D Hawkeye to Command the UCLASS RAQ-25 Navy Strike Drone?

The US Navy has decided to embed its future unmanned surveillance and strike aircraft in the same air wing that operates the Northrop Grumman E-2C/D, an airborne command and control platform.

The decision settles a philosophical debate within the navy over who should have command over the unmanned carrier launched airborne surveillance and strike (UCLASS) aircraft during operations.

Options under review as late as August included operating UCLASS aircraft as a standalone unit, as a detachment to a wing of Lockheed Martin F-35C fighters or as a detachment to a wing that includes the E-2C/D.

Naval officials quietly announced their decision in a little-noticed directive released last month. That notice, dated 18 December, says a new UCLASS unit called the “fleet introduction team” will be established on 1 October.

The notice also says the first UCLASS unit will be a detachment to the airborne command and control logistics wing on board the carrier. That wing includes the E-2C and E-2D, a fleet that monitors airspace for hostile aircraft and missiles and directs the carrier’s strike aircraft in air combat.

The directive confirms that the navy has decided to assign the UCLASS fleet to the commander of the E-2 unit on board the carrier, a Naval Air Systems command (NAVAIR) spokeswoman tells Flightglobal.

The navy, however, has not settled on the details of how future E-2 crews will operate alongside the UCLASS fleet.

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Japan Purchases Global Hawk, V-22 & E-2D

Japan has announced the selection of the Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk for its high-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) requirement and the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey for its tilt-rotor requirement.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) also confirmed that it would buy a Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft. All three requirements were announced in the fiscal year 2015 budget request.

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Japan is actually buying 17 V-22s.

A Picture of Xian Y7-100 AWACS

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KJ500 AWACS Prototype Spotted

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