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6th gen: “I’m the most agile!” F35: “I’m the most versatile!” Darkstar: “I’m the fastest!” B52: “I’m the oldest!” B21: “I’m the sneakiest!” Wedgetail: *Behold! I guide the hand that moves the pawns of this chessboard!*
From DOD, US command: Dear Pilots, It may have escaped your attention that you are basically ground pounders with a certification to fly some of the aircraft we entrust you with. To be clear, we have people who will tell you where to shit, why to shit, how to shit, and even how much to shit. We will tell you where to go, how to go, why to go, and which of those objects on your radar screen to shoot at. Top Gun: Maverick was a great movie and all that....just remember, you pull that kind of shit with one of our command aircraft and you'll spend the rest of your days cleaning toilets with an effing toothbrush. That is all.
Wedge-tailed eagles are fcking awesome. There are many species of bird that I feed in my suburban Aussie back yard, and every now and then they'll collectively crap themselves and go hide in trees. I look up and see a wedgie circling way way way up overhead. No-one is safe. It once glided low over me and my front gates and its wingspan was as wide as the gates...or about 9 feet. I've spotted a few out in the bush and watched them for hours. Never flapping their wings. I think "Wedgetail" is a brilliant name for our E-7s.
I remember driving past a wedgrtail on the back road between Coffs Harbour and Grafton (at Braunstone). It had landed on a roadkill (sheep). Not even 10 fet away, and I had to look up to stare it eye to eye. Just stared straight at me and gave me a what are you going to do look, and flexed its talons claiming it's next meal.
@@AmbianEagleheartAt the Healesville Sanctuary NE of Melbourne in the 90's, they had a tamed wedgie named "Gabrielle". She lived somewhere nearby and would fly in at feeding times during the day. They had a small amphitheatre for people to sit and watch, and her handler would walk out into the centre wearing a portable microphone and a belt bag. He took something out of the bag (turned out to be a dead mouse that they bred there) and hurled it straight up. She swooped in from nowhere and YOINK! She downed that immediately and flew around us as the guy explained stuff about her. She swooped down just over his head and then up at me (I was sitting about 6 rows up), so she came from just below me to close enough that she barely brushed the peak of my baseball cap as she flew right over my head. One of the most amazing experiences of my 60 years. ❤ Sorry for the long reply, but I was a wedgie fan from that day on.
One of the Air bosses in the U.S, when asked about adopting the Wedgetail, said when the Aussies tell us something is good, we listen. With the UK onboard also it makes good sense for the USAF to acquire this fine aircraft. Good episode, thanks for posting!
@@BlyGuy exercise RED FLAG then the combat ops over syria. Aussies have been sending aircraft to the US over the past few years to take part in RED FLAG training exercises, this gives them a chance to play with each others goodies and our long history of working together on various operations during and after WW2 means that not only the AF but all the various arms of the american military like playing with the aussies. During the syria ops i honestly would be surprised if they had US airmen operating the computers but a ride along Commander to help with coordination. To show this there is a youtube video from go pro of a team of aus and us soldiers in a firefight with the taliban, the american sees the aus soldier who calls him sir, the aussie in traditional humor says im corporal, just call me Dave, then in the background you hear someone yelling hey dave. the US then give tactical command to the australian and it wasl like they had been operating together since basic training. Trump when he was president nearly upset this close relationship when he decided to cut defence ties with us... the head of the US military got wind and i kid you not an hour later he retracted his statement that how good our relationship is.
And the US Government wouldn't let US defense contractors build highly classified systems for foreign nations without their permission. Simply put the US let this be built and let foreign militaries work out the kinks before ordering their own.
I dated an ec-130 jamming operator for a bit. They can, and have, shut down F-22's. The capabilities are classified and I didn't have need-to-know. But they can do stuff most of us don't even realize.
@@davewebster5120 "The EC-130H Compass Call is an airborne tactical weapon system using a heavily modified version of the C-130 Hercules airframe. The system disrupts enemy command and control communications and limits adversary coordination essential for enemy force management. The Compass Call system employs offensive counter-information and electronic attack (or EA) capabilities in support of U.S. and Coalition tactical air, surface, and special operations forces." They didn't shut down an F-22.
Speaking as an American, I'm glad we adopted the Wedgetail. Not every military requirement, even for the US, has to have gold-plated specifications, and many development programs in the US have shown that perfect is the insidious enemy of good enough. Our friends across the Pacific (Australia, NZ, Japan, Korea, etc) aren't idiots, and I am perfectly happy for our military to use something that was designed for them.
is a lot of Australian tech in US military. US Navy use a Australian decoy rocket system on their ships and has saved many against Houthis in Yemen. lot of Australian AI in there also. Hypersonics Australia has helped USA since early 2000's.. this is a big one and Australia is never mentioned but is actually ahead of all in scramjets and has world fastest at mach 12 and test fly a scramjet hypersonic drone this year. HAWC scramjet missile is based on thies design.
saw one trying to get some chooks of ours before, then landed on a telegraph pole next to a magpie that was swooping it. The crow was only up to the wedgies thigh
Speaking as an Australian, I’m glad we’ve got allies like you guys (as much as we meme on each other, but recent years don’t seem the time for that kind of joke) Apparently quite a bit of our allied international testing gets done in the Outback (plus your deserts as you’d likely know) Mates look out for mates and Im glad we’ve got matres like you guys NZ, canada, UK, Japan, korea and the others Im forgetting I’ve found in recent years that when we design things (same with you guys) the allied nations are often still a big consideration
@@micksmith-vt5yiIi’m 3/4 through my engineering degree and after finding out we do a LOT more defence engineering than I’d thought Weaponising being an asshole seems very Australian 😂
Worked in quality assurance at Boeing Australia for 25 years, had a mate who is a aeronautical engineer went to the US and RAAF Williamtown air force base NSW to create this thing. The quality of the electronic support measures and electronic counter measures is amazing let alone all this with a signals intelligence capability. E-7 Wedgetail is generations beyond the E-3 Sentry ......a worthy replacement.
It's good to see the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) getting credit for the Wedgetail's existence in this video. I've seen another coverage of this topic from a different (US) source, of how the USAF is replacing their existing AWACS fleet with the Wedgetail,, but the narrative made it looked that it was the USAF that initiated the commissioning of the Wedgetail. With no mentioned that it was the RAAF who initiated the RFP for an advanced airspace battle management aircraft, which Boeing won with their E-7 proposal (as correctly pointed out here). Kudos on a well researched and presented episode (as always). 👍
@@ianrichards909 So what?!...are you an American? Did you even get the point of my comment? It doesn't sound like you did. Read it again. MY point is the impression the other narrative shown gave the USAF the credit for the Wedgetail. It's like giving Ford credit w/inventing the car. Or Apple credited w/inventing the mouse. At no point did I mentioned it wasn't a US Design. And while Boeing is a US Company, Boeing isn't the USAF. But if you're happy with half-truths in stories, fair enough. Knock yourself out.
@@fatmanoverlanding I think you might also find that Boeing Defense Australia was the prime contractor on it, heavily designed in AUS. Source: Friends at Boeing Australia.
@@ianrichards909 Designed by Aussies at Boeing Australia and by RAAF and by BAE Australia who supply Australian E7 EWS . not sure if USA does use same or their own. so how can USA supply Australia a Australian built EWS.. incase you do not know what that is.. it is the electronic warfare system. Also in E7 Wedgetail is rumoured to be Australian radar sensor technology also sold to USA from Australia JORN radar system.. this is the biggest most advanced radar in the godamn world that no other country is even 10 years close to having the same technology.. You probably going to say MQ28A Ghost Bat is American technology also lol. Yea why only Australia builds it. Not all is American technology as Boeing Australia, Northrop Grunman Australia. Raytheon Australia. Lockheed Martin Australia all have R&D facilities in Australia for Australian's to develop USA technology. If designed by CSIRO or DSTG Australian government science and research agency it is Australian owned tech and can only be sold if Australian government said so even if built by a American defense company in Australia and why MQ28A Ghost Bat is Australian as was nearly all designed with Australian technology. JORN radar designed by CSIOR AND DSTG is Australian tech even though USA and UK companies did some work on it. Example Australian Bushmaster military vehicle is built by Thales Australia.. yes a French defense company and is Australian owned technology developed by Australia and why only made in Australia. Boeing Australia also are the only country in world to do a resin piece on the Boeing 787 planes wings.. because is a Australian technology invented and owned by Australia even though is a Boeing company lol.
The RAAF tried changing my mind about discharging by offering me a position in the ghost bat's project office in Brisbane. It's funny how they only take notice of your preferences once you throw your D's in
Not many air forces in the world operate best aircraft, Australia or RAAF operates not just Wedgetail but P8A Poseidon n another aircraft that can take credit for KC 30A multi role tanker transport this aircraft lead way innovation that other countries wanted.
Have worked at the Avalon Airshow, and one of the highlights is the RAAF mock air battle scenarios, always a highlight seeing the wedge tail fly in and circle high above the battle space coordinating friendly forces
Yes it’s an awesome capability. FYI for an event as big as the Avalon Air Show the aircraft would’ve also been used to assist ATC to coordinate all the performing aircraft in particular the fast jets. Making sure to Marshall incoming aircraft or pre positioning aircraft prior to their routines as well as safely exiting the aircraft.
1:20 - Chapter 1 - Building the wedgetail 2:25 - Mid roll ads 3:50 - Back to the video 6:55 - Chapter 2 - Specs & capabilities 10:35 - Chapter 3 - Becoming a global phenomenon
I was an Air Force Cadet back when these were in full production at RAAF Amberley and got to tour where they were building these. And it was pretty rad hearing how many standard Boeing parts were used like different landing gear and engines from various 737 models
You both are pathetic liars… all E-7 Wedegetails are made in America… the Boeing 737NG aircraft is made by Boeing in Seattle WA and the MESA Radar built by Northrop Grumman in Linthicum, MD USA… stop spreading lies you pathetic sycophants…
You both are pathetic liars… all E-7 Wedegetails are made in America… the Boeing 737NG aircraft is made by Boeing in Seattle WA and the MESA Radar built by Northrop Grumman in Linthicum, MD USA… stop spreading lies you pathetic sycophants…
I actually worked on this project when I was at Force Development, they were all built in the USA, they only had some minor fit out done in Oz, mostly internal items for testing. None were built in Oz.
@@tlevans62the first two were initially assembled in Seattle. Those two had major refit in Australia. The rest of them were internally built here, in Australia.
Wedgetail - also the LARGEST eagle, and also makes up the crest for the Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, the second oldest air force in the world. (And we have the oldest air force base in the world - still in Airforce hands)
@@carlosandleon actually it is debatable still ..it weighs more then a Golden Eagle at 12.7 pounds compared to 8 pounds. it's length of body is longer at 1,6 metres or 3 feet 6 inches compared to 1m or 25-39 inches Wedgetail has smaller wingspan of 2 inches and that is based on maximum and not always the case. Personally drop the ego and are about same. or if want to be in a competition Wedgetail weighs more and has a longer body but Golden has a wider wingspan on best of days and would not be alway's lol.
Man I just want to say thanks I've been watching your channel a long time I really enjoy it you put a lot of work into the production and cover so much information appreciate the knowledge and the hard work
It's a great choice because your like miles away from pretty much everyone so it's great to have eyes and ears everywhere that can go far away which give you the edge over your enemy not only that but can be good for disaster relief (search and rescue) or immigration. Basically the possibilities are endless so though it's a very expensive project when you think all what it can do or be used for and the fact that your allies will be interested and the jobs for everyone involved it's a win win all around. 🇬🇧🤝🇦🇺🍻👍
@@richardcostello360 - Yes that as well also Drug traffickers. But why you might take the piss we use our ones quite a lot as we are always tracking Russian subs so why do you think Australia doesn't need one? You honestly think China ain't hovering around in the depths of the ocean in Australian territorial waters? 🇬🇧
In the first ten years of my RAAF service, the governments opinion was a. we dont need AWACS. b. we dont need EW. c. we dont need A-A refueling capability. Most of these decisions were political in order to not destabilise the balance of power in the region, ie not upset out northern neighbour. Thankfully all that changed. in the next ten years of my service we got A-A refueling, and I got to witness our hornets tanking on the 707 I was riding in on a flight to Malaysia. EW ie Growlers and AWACS came after I served, but I occasionally see the Wedgetails flying as I live fifty km from their base. FTR the RAAF wanted A-A refueling when they first aquired the F-111 but every government rejected it, and the RAAF again begged for A-A refueling when it became apparent that the classic hornets range was far lower than originally specified, and the government finally listened. When the RAAF was looking at phasing out the F-111, they originally wanted F-15E Strike Eagles, but MD advised them the F/A-18F would be a better option because it can also be converted to EW, ie the Growler. That is why the RAAF chose the super hornet/growler
On one side I feel ofended that other countries using it dont refer to it as a Wedgetail. But then I also preferred the name "Pig" that we gave to the F-111's 😅😅
Back when it was being developed (maybe still) we also refered to the radar on the back of the wedgetail as the "surfboard" 🤣 (acording to my air force family members)
@@BigTrain175Nice. Found this on wikipedia: "The word "aardvark", from the Afrikaans contraction "earth-pig", was the source of the F-111's nickname of "Pig" during its Australian service." So that's a neat connection.
Is also Australian name because we designed it just for our RAAF but Boeing and other countries get the official Boeing E7 name and think some can call it Wedgetail also. Just like Australia MQ28A Ghost Bat AI drone only Australia gets the name Ghost Bat all other's including USA only get Boeing Air Power Teaming System name. since Ghost Bat is almost all Australian tech but Wedgetail wasn.t Ghost Bat names is solely only for Australia.
The E-7A came off the production line as a standard 737 and was then modified by BDA et al. (except for the first two). Boeing was the contract provider and was responsible for the program. They were also responsible for coughing up 3/4 of a billion dollars in penalties.
It's a shame that the E-10 (767 AEW-C) was canceled. The first version of this plane was supposed to be used for cruise missile defense. The second would take an updated version of the MESA and have it on a Boeing 767. The idea was to start producing these back in 2018. PS. Israel doesn't use the E-2 anymore. They produce their own AEW systems, and actually export these. Italy, Singapore, and India use is really awacs. The US Navy is purchasing a few for missile testing. These have a two-sided array for l band radars and an s band radar in the nose and tail.
false. Simon calls this the king of the battlefield that controls everything. when its just a flying radar dish. Im tired of simon overephasizing this shtt. If this was the ruler of the skys, it would carry weapons. This plane carries no weapons, and it can't see tanks. So it is just a radar dish. . Just call it what it is, and stop all this military word salad.
Suffice it to say that the days of your head feeling itchy or sliding back the canopy and giving a sniff of the air to see if any enemy were about are over. Great video and it amazes me how people in positions of power can't see the importance of these types of aircraft... Good 'un on the Aussie's!!
@@rickj6348Nationwide 723 (engine fell off) was also a Boeing 737-200. Why don't I hear of AirBus's having major structural problems... I would also consider MCAS a major structural problem with a hacky software fix.
The door plug and bolts is not a problem isolated to the Max, it's the company's quality check and overall production system that are. So a 'quality escape' can happen to any product that comes out from them till they fix their issues.
@@ch4.hayabusa Airbus has had their fair share of issues, it is just that Boeing currently is under the media's microscope. In fact, all aircraft builders have had issues over the years, you just gotta go and look things up to see what they were instead of attacking someone on RUclips
Australia now have the best refuellers, which I believe we were the first and now a lot of countries are buying. Not the American's as it is based on an Airbus airframe.
Magpies will have a go at Wedgies. I've seen them a few times flapping furiously to gain enough altitude to get to them. The Wedgie just finds another thermal and climbs higher.
Many years ago I was doing skydiving training near Melbourne. One of the drills was what to do if attacked by a wedgetail. Cover your face with your hands and bring your knees up to protect the viscera.
The E-3 AWACS is a very old platform and expensive to operate even with updates over the decades. These platforms are very high value targets because they do so much for the theater they operate in. The E-7, which was smartly adopted by the USAF, are powerful in their ability to detect all manners of targets within their radar range, they can direct friendly fighter and bomber forces, they can conduct ECM and ECCM, and can do those things at longer distances from the enemy's air defense sectors. Russian and China have dedicated resources built to find and destroy these platforms and the E-3 is more vulnerable because it has to loiter closer to the enemy than the E-7. Just recently the only known shoot down of this kind of platform was by Ukrain who went to great lengths to locate the Russian version of the AWACS known as the A-50 Beriev and shoot it down as it was loitering in the Sea of Azov. These platforms are very expensive as well and the crew onboard is highly trained. The loss was a huge blow to the RUAF as well as a great accomplishment for Ukraine who seem to be able to destroy high value targets throughout the conflict. This is right up there with the sinking of the Moskva.
Howdy, small correction: the E-3 and E-7 have similar detection ranges. The comm ranges and ECW/ECCW are likewise similar. The biggest problem with the E-3 is that it lacks the full 360 detection at all times, needing the rotodome to rotate between zones of interest. The E-7 eliminates this issue entirely. With the E-3, battlefield management has to fold in tactical use of the dome alongside other critical decisions.
E-7... since we love giving our aircraft nicknames... I vote for calling them "Chief." That is an E7 in the US NAVY and sounds way better than the E7 version of any other branch.
A quick history on the competition that led to the E-7 being selected by the RAAF There were 3 competitors Raytheon with the Israeli Phalcon system with a rotating radome mounted on Airbus A-310s Lockheed-Martin/Northrup Grumman with the E-2 system with a rotating radome mounted on C-130Js The Boeing E-7 Surprisingly the E-3 system (would have been mounted like Japan on a 767) was considered far more capable than the RAAF wanted. The first 2 were advanced 2nd gen systems, the E-7 a revolutionary 3rd gen system. It was somewhat of a surprise when selected.
I thought the US had already begun to purchase these planes. It fits with the new doctrine in the United States armed forces to use off the shelf parts, whenever they can.
What the US is getting is a "basic dumbdowned" version.......the RAAF and our government WILL NOT release the software outside of our military and we don't fly them out of US bases due to national security concerns
Using a mass produced base.👍🏽 It’s about the contents not the air frame. The staff, avionics, radars, lidars, lasers, radio receivers…. Easy to replace the airframe but not the rest.
Not to mention the Wedge Tail is one of the top 5 largest birds of prey. They catch 20lb wallabies/kangaroos, fly them up to over 150m over a rock/stone field to drop them. Too big to kill? I'll let gravity do it for me
@@spinkid2000The E-7 was AEW&C from the start. Those that worked in the program would give you a bombastic side eye if you referred to it as an AWAC (as the E-3 is known)
@thelandofnod123 it was built from the ground up.......the physical platform and the software technology was all Australian designed for our specific regional threats. ........hence why we can tell ANYONE who wants to buy it that they can only procure dumbed down "export platforms "
@@richardcostello360 Well no, that’s not correct. The RAAF needed a platform, the Government issued a request for information and whittled the choices down to three. Boeing won the contract and was responsible for delivering the project. The DMO was responsible for overseeing the project however Boeing was able to ignore requests from the DMO during design, development and production to deliver the platform as they saw fit. The 737 aircraft rolled off the production line as a 737-700 and was then sent to be modified. The first 2 aircraft were produced in Seattle with the remainder modified in Australia. The main sub contractors were BAe and Northrop Grumman. The Australian government were responsible for procuring certain items though FMS from the US and supply them to Boeing as they were not able to purchase them themselves. Local production of components was also hampered because of the inability of the transfer of technology to Australian companies. To say that only dumb down versions can be sold and Australia must approve them is nonsense. Australia did not control the technology nor were they responsible for producing it. Turkey and South Korea signed contracts for their platforms 2 and 4 years after Australia. Both of them and subsequent countries have their platforms tailored to their needs and not Australia’s.
I would love to see a video about A-50 Beriev AEW, especially in light that Ukraine Arm Forces managed to down two of them in a month. Until recently I thought they probably were unreachable to be shot down but I was very pleased to see news about them being downed. Thanks in advance! Love your channel.
Fun fact about wedgetail eagles they are the inspiration for the bent up tips on the wings of large airliners like the airbus. They also have a really awesome call which if you have ever heard the classic eagle call associated with the bald eagle that is actually the call of a wedgetail eagle.
My dad was born in 75 and he is loosing his dad soon your little comment about almost 50 made me think about the fleeting amount of time I have left with him and how quickly my first 30 years has gone and how soon the next will come
Thank you both for your kind words I am fairing well each day is easier than the last my dad is doing well we had a wonderful dinner with each other last night for Easter I am blessed to have him
CFM56 engines typically burn through a quart of oil every 5 hours if theyre in really good shape, and they hold 20 quarts, ao a Wedgetail can fly about 100 hours straight before the engines seize.
@@gfenwick1 WTF are you talking about? All jet engines burn a little oil. It's just what they do. I've literally never seen a jet engine that doesn't, and I've worked on hundreds of aircraft.
@echTalk FFS, I never said that - I said Ive never come across any of the reports on any of the aircraft having seized engines - and I was in the program from 2006 to 2015. there's never been any vendor reports around problem engines. prob half of the australian domestic large jet fleet uses these engines - and none of the civlian platforms have been down due to seized engines. That means they are being maintained with effect. A30-001 has been in service since 2004, these planes have been in service for between 20 and 9 years (A30-006)
@echTalk unless the maintainers are ex garuda, then none of them would be falling asleep at the wheel, the nature of the support contract means that the vendor has self interest at work to do the job properly. without naming the vendor, their reputation in industry is to rape and pillage as thats how they get paid to meet the platform support KPI's. they set up a pure defence work division which ended up raiding their domestic support division because the rates paid on supporting RAAF was so much better. those frames are serviced well before hitting critical component support schedules. The RSP out of Aust is just as professional. The danger of the internet where you lose contect could mean that you and I are on the same page but crossing in the night....
I've heard they're very territorial. I work in aviation and our ecologist has had his drone attacked by kites when he was using it for bird chasing and fence inspections. After that he wouldn't use it anywhere with Wedgetails. He said they'd likely destroy it, and possibly injure themselves@@chrisyoung7157
Most hang gliders that fly inland have been attacked by wedgies. They can do a lot of damage, very large claws. One used to pull the elastic of a particular gliders battens, causing it to fall out upon landing..
As MESA was being developed there were several articles about its potential Ground Moving Target Indicator (GMTI) capability. Upon the descision to adopt in the USAF all that info has dried up. The suggestion by many of us was for the E-3/E-8 and other 'Boutique Mission' USAF aircraft to be ruooled up into one. With sufficient computer power and some AI software that should be possible. With the advent of 'swarm attack' drones the track stores and radar target processing most likely needs an upgrade. Can we make a Quantim Computer that small?
The aircraft was developed to meet Aussie operational requirements, and later on it was selected by Turkish and South Korean Air Force. After more than decades, the aircraft is picked by USAF and RAF to replace aging E-3C. The only major issue that this aircraft facing, is that the cost per unit has skyrocketed. Indeed, South Korean Air Force is considering to acquire four more of this but they might choose alternative option if the price of this aircraft keep goes up.
Besides replacing the E-3, it also replaces the E-8 JSTARS which flew in combat for the first time during 1991 as a prototype and focused on ground moving target indicators. JSTARS recently stood down.
G'day, I live in Australia, and I have to say, the first time I saw an RAAF wedgetail I was a bit disappointed... I was expecting to see 'the top hat' for the radome not the long thin antenna of the wedgetail. Thanks to your video I now know that the wedgetail is the at the leading edge of current technologies.... AND WE GOT IT FIRST... suck that 'merica !!
One thing I didn’t see you mention is the wedetail is that the name was in part chosen because it’s the largest bird on our continent (Idk if you guys get them overseas? I think they’re in south east asia too)
The Wedgetail, an Australian eagle famous for its ability to to see tiny creatures from great distance. A great name for the aircraft. Great to see Australia at the forefront of modern warfare capabilities.
I live near and smaller airport that the military frequently uses to practice at and is isn't very busy. It is a FedEx hub so the runways are big enough for some bigger planes. I see some of these types of planes from time to time and it's really cool. My house is 7 minute driver from the airport so they are always flying really low. It's bad ass to see them so close. Does suck when the really big ones decide to do circles because it literally shakes the house lol.
until a couple of months ago, I used to see at least one Wedgetail fly over my town every day, usually late in the afternoon returning to its base, RAAF Williamtown NSW which is 47 km from my town. One was deployed to Europe to monitor the war in Ukraine, but I havent see any of the others recently
Lived in the east anglia in the UK in the 80s and early 90s near big US and UK airbases. Used to see lots of AWACS planes flying overhead. (Had a bloodhound missile base down the road too)
The entire avionics system and radar system including the next generation which is shown what design built and manufactured by Hughes Aircraft Company. The initial design went airborne in late 1970's iirr with both the original and new radar arrays created by HAC scientists at the Hughes Research Lab in Malibu, California back in the late 80's........ today known as HRL.
One of my best mates was/is? (ex/military mates get to catch you once a decade...) the lead project engineer/manager of the Wedgetail in the RAAF. Very proud of him I am, even if I never really know what he is up to anymore with my security clearance being long long gone decades ago. Now maybe its just an Aussie thing, but we just call them ''ayewacks'', never that abomination of a term dude was saying here, killing me on the inside just a bit every time I heard it.
Its capability also makes it the first target you go after. Would need lots of protection. In the way a carrier group protects the main asset, something would have to protect the Wedgetail?
Ahhhh it's called the RAAF........literally the RAAF protects these as they do their business.......plus with nearly a 1000km range on a good day......well it's hard to sneak up on it
@@ianrichards909 Designed in Australia by Australian's at Boeing Australia even uses another Australian companies EWS system. yes EWS electronic warfare system. Uses some of Australia JORN radar sensors technology also. JORN is biggest most advanced radar in the world that even USA bought off Australia. Russia China and USA are 10 years behind in the technology.
Missiles becoming faster, longer range, cheaper, and more accurate is very scary for something that practically broadcasts its location. We can’t make enough of these.
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It will always be called the Wedge tail to me mate . 👌👌
The "Cook Unity" advert AUDIO is super "LOUD" compared to the rest of the video @Simon... Your vids are starting to look more and more like "TV."
Why do you keep calling them an AEW&C - with 7 syllables - when most people call them an AEWAC - with 2 syllables?
😂😂😂
:-(.... I tried to set up with Cook Unity... complete shit show... I am dealing with an AI help chat... couldn' really set up an account. I travel in and out of Michigan and can use this service and am in the target market. And I wanted to convert a customer through your sponsorshi system to support obviously.... and I mentioned that I am a Simon Whistler fan in the chat and they are calling me Simon for the past ten minutes... I tried
6th gen: “I’m the most agile!”
F35: “I’m the most versatile!”
Darkstar: “I’m the fastest!”
B52: “I’m the oldest!”
B21: “I’m the sneakiest!”
Wedgetail: *Behold! I guide the hand that moves the pawns of this chessboard!*
Choice bro
No lie
Now this is a proper joke.
I hope RAS reads this and learns what a joke really is.
@krysb7119 well, 6th gen probably won't be most agile. But will probably be the most stealthy. And have a laser cannon. And drones.
From DOD, US command:
Dear Pilots, It may have escaped your attention that you are basically ground pounders with a certification to fly some of the aircraft we entrust you with. To be clear, we have people who will tell you where to shit, why to shit, how to shit, and even how much to shit. We will tell you where to go, how to go, why to go, and which of those objects on your radar screen to shoot at. Top Gun: Maverick was a great movie and all that....just remember, you pull that kind of shit with one of our command aircraft and you'll spend the rest of your days cleaning toilets with an effing toothbrush.
That is all.
Wedge-tailed eagles are fcking awesome.
There are many species of bird that I feed in my suburban Aussie back yard, and every now and then they'll collectively crap themselves and go hide in trees. I look up and see a wedgie circling way way way up overhead. No-one is safe. It once glided low over me and my front gates and its wingspan was as wide as the gates...or about 9 feet.
I've spotted a few out in the bush and watched them for hours. Never flapping their wings.
I think "Wedgetail" is a brilliant name for our E-7s.
I remember driving past a wedgrtail on the back road between Coffs Harbour and Grafton (at Braunstone).
It had landed on a roadkill (sheep).
Not even 10 fet away, and I had to look up to stare it eye to eye.
Just stared straight at me and gave me a what are you going to do look, and flexed its talons claiming it's next meal.
Yes but can they box too?
@@AmbianEagleheartAt the Healesville Sanctuary NE of Melbourne in the 90's, they had a tamed wedgie named "Gabrielle".
She lived somewhere nearby and would fly in at feeding times during the day. They had a small amphitheatre for people to sit and watch, and her handler would walk out into the centre wearing a portable microphone and a belt bag. He took something out of the bag (turned out to be a dead mouse that they bred there) and hurled it straight up. She swooped in from nowhere and YOINK!
She downed that immediately and flew around us as the guy explained stuff about her. She swooped down just over his head and then up at me (I was sitting about 6 rows up), so she came from just below me to close enough that she barely brushed the peak of my baseball cap as she flew right over my head. One of the most amazing experiences of my 60 years.
❤
Sorry for the long reply, but I was a wedgie fan from that day on.
@@rickbase833No-one knows. Every attempt at putting boxing gloves on one of 'em ended up with significant facial reconstruction. 😉
Do they swoop down and grab your underpants, is that why they're called wedgies?
Wedgetail: I operate 600km from the battlefield
A50: I operate from the bottom of the Azov sea
good one.
One of the Air bosses in the U.S, when asked about adopting the Wedgetail, said when the Aussies tell us something is good, we listen.
With the UK onboard also it makes good sense for the USAF to acquire this fine aircraft.
Good episode, thanks for posting!
Any idea why AF brass holds so much regard for the opinions of Aussies?
@@BlyGuy exercise RED FLAG then the combat ops over syria. Aussies have been sending aircraft to the US over the past few years to take part in RED FLAG training exercises, this gives them a chance to play with each others goodies and our long history of working together on various operations during and after WW2 means that not only the AF but all the various arms of the american military like playing with the aussies. During the syria ops i honestly would be surprised if they had US airmen operating the computers but a ride along Commander to help with coordination. To show this there is a youtube video from go pro of a team of aus and us soldiers in a firefight with the taliban, the american sees the aus soldier who calls him sir, the aussie in traditional humor says im corporal, just call me Dave, then in the background you hear someone yelling hey dave. the US then give tactical command to the australian and it wasl like they had been operating together since basic training. Trump when he was president nearly upset this close relationship when he decided to cut defence ties with us... the head of the US military got wind and i kid you not an hour later he retracted his statement that how good our relationship is.
He who controls the spice, controls the universe.
Mmm, cinnimon
the spice melange 😮
Love a good dune reference. 😂
42
And the US Government wouldn't let US defense contractors build highly classified systems for foreign nations without their permission. Simply put the US let this be built and let foreign militaries work out the kinks before ordering their own.
As an Aussie, money well spent, these units have been outstanding, and fit well with our 5th gen F35's and our autonomous aircraft....
Electronic warfare planes are absolutely insane.
Ya like the growlers
I dated an ec-130 jamming operator for a bit. They can, and have, shut down F-22's. The capabilities are classified and I didn't have need-to-know. But they can do stuff most of us don't even realize.
@@davewebster5120 "The EC-130H Compass Call is an airborne tactical weapon system using a heavily modified version of the C-130 Hercules airframe. The system disrupts enemy command and control communications and limits adversary coordination essential for enemy force management. The Compass Call system employs offensive counter-information and electronic attack (or EA) capabilities in support of U.S. and Coalition tactical air, surface, and special operations forces."
They didn't shut down an F-22.
@@davewebster5120but was she any good at jamming things in other highly classified areas?
This is the real question we all need to know
@@Scopesdoped They are in Australia operates them as well. Awesome aircraft.
Speaking as an American, I'm glad we adopted the Wedgetail. Not every military requirement, even for the US, has to have gold-plated specifications, and many development programs in the US have shown that perfect is the insidious enemy of good enough. Our friends across the Pacific (Australia, NZ, Japan, Korea, etc) aren't idiots, and I am perfectly happy for our military to use something that was designed for them.
is a lot of Australian tech in US military. US Navy use a Australian decoy rocket system on their ships and has saved many against Houthis in Yemen. lot of Australian AI in there also.
Hypersonics Australia has helped USA since early 2000's.. this is a big one and Australia is never mentioned but is actually ahead of all in scramjets and has world fastest at mach 12 and test fly a scramjet hypersonic drone this year.
HAWC scramjet missile is based on thies design.
You Americans don't have any 'friends'. You buy vassals, or bully serfs. Beg Dark, Soon Come.
saw one trying to get some chooks of ours before, then landed on a telegraph pole next to a magpie that was swooping it. The crow was only up to the wedgies thigh
Speaking as an Australian, I’m glad we’ve got allies like you guys (as much as we meme on each other, but recent years don’t seem the time for that kind of joke)
Apparently quite a bit of our allied international testing gets done in the Outback (plus your deserts as you’d likely know)
Mates look out for mates and Im glad we’ve got matres like you guys NZ, canada, UK, Japan, korea and the others Im forgetting
I’ve found in recent years that when we design things (same with you guys) the allied nations are often still a big consideration
@@micksmith-vt5yiIi’m 3/4 through my engineering degree and after finding out we do a LOT more defence engineering than I’d thought
Weaponising being an asshole seems very Australian 😂
10:54
Your count comes in at 14 planes, not 12.
"6 to Australia, four to south korea, four to Turkey"
Math is hard
@@ericg7044 Obviously, it was an intern's fault.🤣
Isn’t this the „woke“ arithmetic?
Translation: "I've nothing better to do."
@@murraywebster1228 Was that a joke? If not, you need to learn what woke means. :)
Worked in quality assurance at Boeing Australia for 25 years, had a mate who is a aeronautical engineer went to the US and RAAF Williamtown air force base NSW to create this thing.
The quality of the electronic support measures and electronic counter measures is amazing let alone all this with a signals intelligence capability.
E-7 Wedgetail is generations beyond the E-3 Sentry ......a worthy replacement.
It's good to see the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) getting credit for the Wedgetail's existence in this video. I've seen another coverage of this topic from a different (US) source, of how the USAF is replacing their existing AWACS fleet with the Wedgetail,, but the narrative made it looked that it was the USAF that initiated the commissioning of the Wedgetail. With no mentioned that it was the RAAF who initiated the RFP for an advanced airspace battle management aircraft, which Boeing won with their E-7 proposal (as correctly pointed out here). Kudos on a well researched and presented episode (as always). 👍
So what, still doesn’t change the fact that all E-7 Wedgetails are made in America… by Boeing in America… by Americans…
@@ianrichards909 So what?!...are you an American? Did you even get the point of my comment? It doesn't sound like you did. Read it again. MY point is the impression the other narrative shown gave the USAF the credit for the Wedgetail. It's like giving Ford credit w/inventing the car. Or Apple credited w/inventing the mouse. At no point did I mentioned it wasn't a US Design. And while Boeing is a US Company, Boeing isn't the USAF. But if you're happy with half-truths in stories, fair enough. Knock yourself out.
@@ianrichards909Only two RAAF Wedgetails were built in Merica by Mericans.
@@fatmanoverlanding I think you might also find that Boeing Defense Australia was the prime contractor on it, heavily designed in AUS. Source: Friends at Boeing Australia.
@@ianrichards909 Designed by Aussies at Boeing Australia and by RAAF and by BAE Australia who supply Australian E7 EWS . not sure if USA does use same or their own. so how can USA supply Australia a Australian built EWS.. incase you do not know what that is.. it is the electronic warfare system.
Also in E7 Wedgetail is rumoured to be Australian radar sensor technology also sold to USA from Australia JORN radar system.. this is the biggest most advanced radar in the godamn world that no other country is even 10 years close to having the same technology..
You probably going to say MQ28A Ghost Bat is American technology also lol.
Yea why only Australia builds it.
Not all is American technology as Boeing Australia, Northrop Grunman Australia. Raytheon Australia. Lockheed Martin Australia all have R&D facilities in Australia for Australian's to develop USA technology.
If designed by CSIRO or DSTG Australian government science and research agency it is Australian owned tech and can only be sold if Australian government said so even if built by a American defense company in Australia and why MQ28A Ghost Bat is Australian as was nearly all designed with Australian technology.
JORN radar designed by CSIOR AND DSTG is Australian tech even though USA and UK companies did some work on it.
Example Australian Bushmaster military vehicle is built by Thales Australia.. yes a French defense company and is Australian owned technology developed by Australia and why only made in Australia.
Boeing Australia also are the only country in world to do a resin piece on the Boeing 787 planes wings.. because is a Australian technology invented and owned by Australia even though is a Boeing company lol.
Great shot of a flight crew (?) at 5:58 -> sleeve patch "Crew XXXX, Fuelled by XXXX"
XXXX - is the local Qld beer, yep Badass!
each crew has its own semi official patch that is a different beer. for instance crew 2 is based off toheeys and crew 4 is 4x
spelled xxxx because Queenslanders cant spell piss
I know it’s xxxx but I don’t want to confuse the non aussies too much by changing the spelling half way through
@@davidewhite69at least we don’t drink it like blues.
Please do a video on the P-8 Posideon anti-submarine aircraft.
I work on them, love that plane.
Imagine the E-7 and P-8 arguing about which one is deadlier until the MAX points out that it has more "confirmed kills".
Aren't the Max deaths partially attributable to poor maintenance of the pitot tubes?
@@ch4.hayabusa No , it was just bad software and design.
@@ch4.hayabusa Software, but pitot tubes have caused crashes on other types of aircraft.
When it comes to 'confirmed kills', DJI is so far ahead of everyone combined it isn't even funny.
Haha comments even better when u release that the E-7 and P-8 will be on the same line at lossie haha
Before the Wedgetail, the JSDF (Japan Self-Defense Force) obtained airborne radar platform consisting of an E-3-like rotating radar on a 767 chassis.
Yeah, they use the E-767
really loved their depiction in tom clancys books
The ones that got crashed by a flashlight? Were those real?
@@WallStreet06 yes it was Boeing E767
Simon, you're the best. Been watching multiple channels of yours for years and I still get enthralled with your videos. Appreciate you sir!
Sadly the biggest danger to this plane may be the door falling out
Lol
😂
That’s the max. This is the NG model
Or the wheels falling off
Had to be said!
You should look at the Ghost Bat 🦇 next.
Another RAAF project.
Great idea!
The RAAF tried changing my mind about discharging by offering me a position in the ghost bat's project office in Brisbane.
It's funny how they only take notice of your preferences once you throw your D's in
The US has bought one of these already, but they won’t build it.
@@XxBloggs Ghost Bat will remain a Australian sovereign export and the AI is especially Australian designed and definitely never leave Australia.
Absolutely fantastic video. Thank you 🇦🇺
Not many air forces in the world operate best aircraft, Australia or RAAF operates not just Wedgetail but P8A Poseidon n another aircraft that can take credit for KC 30A multi role tanker transport this aircraft lead way innovation that other countries wanted.
And F35's and soon the MQ28 drone. Which the US is also buying off us.
And F-35
SAAB Globaleye AEW&C is an aircraft you should do a video about.
Trained on radar control with colleagues who graduated up to AWACS during heyday in 1980’s. Thanks for the update.
Have worked at the Avalon Airshow, and one of the highlights is the RAAF mock air battle scenarios, always a highlight seeing the wedge tail fly in and circle high above the battle space coordinating friendly forces
Yes it’s an awesome capability. FYI for an event as big as the Avalon Air Show the aircraft would’ve also been used to assist ATC to coordinate all the performing aircraft in particular the fast jets. Making sure to Marshall incoming aircraft or pre positioning aircraft prior to their routines as well as safely exiting the aircraft.
1:20 - Chapter 1 - Building the wedgetail
2:25 - Mid roll ads
3:50 - Back to the video
6:55 - Chapter 2 - Specs & capabilities
10:35 - Chapter 3 - Becoming a global phenomenon
Well done the RAAF and Boeing Northrop Grumman..
My love of the E-7 started with Project Wingman, since AWACS Galaxy flies one.
The Wedge Tail E-7
America: "Hmmm...?"
United Kingdom: " Yes, we'll purchase some E-7's!" 🇬🇧
America: "Okay, We're in!" 😅
At least the UK is avoiding another debacle like the Nimrod AEW3. A billion pounds spent only to cancel and buy the Sentry.
I was an Air Force Cadet back when these were in full production at RAAF Amberley and got to tour where they were building these. And it was pretty rad hearing how many standard Boeing parts were used like different landing gear and engines from various 737 models
So was I. I remember seeing it in the hanger close to the 82WG hangers
You both are pathetic liars… all E-7 Wedegetails are made in America… the Boeing 737NG aircraft is made by Boeing in Seattle WA and the MESA Radar built by Northrop Grumman in Linthicum, MD USA… stop spreading lies you pathetic sycophants…
You both are pathetic liars… all E-7 Wedegetails are made in America… the Boeing 737NG aircraft is made by Boeing in Seattle WA and the MESA Radar built by Northrop Grumman in Linthicum, MD USA… stop spreading lies you pathetic sycophants…
I actually worked on this project when I was at Force Development, they were all built in the USA, they only had some minor fit out done in Oz, mostly internal items for testing. None were built in Oz.
@@tlevans62the first two were initially assembled in Seattle. Those two had major refit in Australia. The rest of them were internally built here, in Australia.
Wedgetail - also the LARGEST eagle, and also makes up the crest for the Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, the second oldest air force in the world. (And we have the oldest air force base in the world - still in Airforce hands)
Maybe largest australian eagle but it’s certainly not the largest
Does it squeaks like a chicken as the Bald Eagle does too?
Golden eagle is the largest eagle
Good to see the Aussies taking the lead.
@@carlosandleon actually it is debatable still ..it weighs more then a Golden Eagle at 12.7 pounds compared to 8 pounds. it's length of body is longer at 1,6 metres or 3 feet 6 inches compared to 1m or 25-39 inches Wedgetail has smaller wingspan of 2 inches and that is based on maximum and not always the case.
Personally drop the ego and are about same. or if want to be in a competition Wedgetail weighs more and has a longer body but Golden has a wider wingspan on best of days and would not be alway's lol.
Man I just want to say thanks I've been watching your channel a long time I really enjoy it you put a lot of work into the production and cover so much information appreciate the knowledge and the hard work
Given their historic conservatism, its pretty incredible that the Australian Defence Department made such a choice. And such a good choice.
It's a great choice because your like miles away from pretty much everyone so it's great to have eyes and ears everywhere that can go far away which give you the edge over your enemy not only that but can be good for disaster relief (search and rescue) or immigration. Basically the possibilities are endless so though it's a very expensive project when you think all what it can do or be used for and the fact that your allies will be interested and the jobs for everyone involved it's a win win all around. 🇬🇧🤝🇦🇺🍻👍
We needed to have something to warn us about incoming Indonesian fishing boats 😂
@@richardcostello360 - Yes that as well also Drug traffickers. But why you might take the piss we use our ones quite a lot as we are always tracking Russian subs so why do you think Australia doesn't need one? You honestly think China ain't hovering around in the depths of the ocean in Australian territorial waters? 🇬🇧
In the first ten years of my RAAF service, the governments opinion was a. we dont need AWACS. b. we dont need EW. c. we dont need A-A refueling capability. Most of these decisions were political in order to not destabilise the balance of power in the region, ie not upset out northern neighbour. Thankfully all that changed. in the next ten years of my service we got A-A refueling, and I got to witness our hornets tanking on the 707 I was riding in on a flight to Malaysia. EW ie Growlers and AWACS came after I served, but I occasionally see the Wedgetails flying as I live fifty km from their base. FTR the RAAF wanted A-A refueling when they first aquired the F-111 but every government rejected it, and the RAAF again begged for A-A refueling when it became apparent that the classic hornets range was far lower than originally specified, and the government finally listened. When the RAAF was looking at phasing out the F-111, they originally wanted F-15E Strike Eagles, but MD advised them the F/A-18F would be a better option because it can also be converted to EW, ie the Growler. That is why the RAAF chose the super hornet/growler
On one side I feel ofended that other countries using it dont refer to it as a Wedgetail.
But then I also preferred the name "Pig" that we gave to the F-111's 😅😅
Back when it was being developed (maybe still) we also refered to the radar on the back of the wedgetail as the "surfboard" 🤣 (acording to my air force family members)
Americans called them Aardvarks.
@@BigTrain175Nice. Found this on wikipedia: "The word "aardvark", from the Afrikaans contraction "earth-pig", was the source of the F-111's nickname of "Pig" during its Australian service." So that's a neat connection.
Is also Australian name because we designed it just for our RAAF but Boeing and other countries get the official Boeing E7 name and think some can call it Wedgetail also.
Just like Australia MQ28A Ghost Bat AI drone only Australia gets the name Ghost Bat all other's including USA only get Boeing Air Power Teaming System name. since Ghost Bat is almost all Australian tech but Wedgetail wasn.t Ghost Bat names is solely only for Australia.
Worked on the Australian Wedgtail about 10 years ago and Boing only makes the Airframe
The E-7A came off the production line as a standard 737 and was then modified by BDA et al. (except for the first two). Boeing was the contract provider and was responsible for the program. They were also responsible for coughing up 3/4 of a billion dollars in penalties.
10yrs and misspelled the manufacturer?
Shame! Shame! Shame! 😂
Does Boing make bouncy balls?
USA made that radar thi
It's a shame that the E-10 (767 AEW-C) was canceled. The first version of this plane was supposed to be used for cruise missile defense. The second would take an updated version of the MESA and have it on a Boeing 767. The idea was to start producing these back in 2018.
PS. Israel doesn't use the E-2 anymore. They produce their own AEW systems, and actually export these. Italy, Singapore, and India use is really awacs. The US Navy is purchasing a few for missile testing. These have a two-sided array for l band radars and an s band radar in the nose and tail.
Never heard of this plane till now. Thank you.
Drove past several being prepped in King County, WA. Really neat looking planes.
Kudos to the people making the titles of your videos, so much more enticing than “this giant flying brick with a radar”
false. Simon calls this the king of the battlefield that controls everything. when its just a flying radar dish. Im tired of simon overephasizing this shtt. If this was the ruler of the skys, it would carry weapons. This plane carries no weapons, and it can't see tanks. So it is just a radar dish. . Just call it what it is, and stop all this military word salad.
Another Aussie legend. We are very proud of the wedgetails
Made in America 😂😂😂
@@ianrichards909 designed by Australia and all but the first 2 were built here
Suffice it to say that the days of your head feeling itchy or sliding back the canopy and giving a sniff of the air to see if any enemy were about are over. Great video and it amazes me how people in positions of power can't see the importance of these types of aircraft... Good 'un on the Aussie's!!
It's based on 737NG not MAX, don't worry about bolts or door plug 😂
Oh good, they just have to worry about the roof going 🎉 then (Aloha Airlines 243)
@@ch4.hayabusaThat was a 737-200, not a 737-NG. The NG is a solid airframe
@@rickj6348Nationwide 723 (engine fell off) was also a Boeing 737-200. Why don't I hear of AirBus's having major structural problems... I would also consider MCAS a major structural problem with a hacky software fix.
The door plug and bolts is not a problem isolated to the Max, it's the company's quality check and overall production system that are. So a 'quality escape' can happen to any product that comes out from them till they fix their issues.
@@ch4.hayabusa Airbus has had their fair share of issues, it is just that Boeing currently is under the media's microscope. In fact, all aircraft builders have had issues over the years, you just gotta go and look things up to see what they were instead of attacking someone on RUclips
I cant find any videos on the sweedish ship Vasa Simon. Just a suggestion. Fascinating story. Thank you for you and your teams hard work.
Seeing a 737-wedge tail being fueled by the aging KC-135 is a hoot. 17:02
Australia now have the best refuellers, which I believe we were the first and now a lot of countries are buying. Not the American's as it is based on an Airbus airframe.
@@the_explorerist
I’ve seen Casa drogue chute refueler
KC-295
I thought there was a KC-45 (KC-767)
@@larryscott3982 You mean the en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_KC-46_Pegasus.
Compare the stats with the en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbus_A330_MRTT
Ol' SImon's been on one about aviation lately...I love it!
The Wedgetail eagle is known to attacki hang gliders and para gliders. They also attck drones.
Based eagle
Magpies will have a go at Wedgies. I've seen them a few times flapping furiously to gain enough altitude to get to them. The Wedgie just finds another thermal and climbs higher.
They also attack people. I have 2 scars on the top of my head from one that attacked me while riding home from school when I was 10.
And my ducks.
Many years ago I was doing skydiving training near Melbourne. One of the drills was what to do if attacked by a wedgetail. Cover your face with your hands and bring your knees up to protect the viscera.
The E-3 AWACS is a very old platform and expensive to operate even with updates over the decades. These platforms are very high value targets because they do so much for the theater they operate in. The E-7, which was smartly adopted by the USAF, are powerful in their ability to detect all manners of targets within their radar range, they can direct friendly fighter and bomber forces, they can conduct ECM and ECCM, and can do those things at longer distances from the enemy's air defense sectors. Russian and China have dedicated resources built to find and destroy these platforms and the E-3 is more vulnerable because it has to loiter closer to the enemy than the E-7.
Just recently the only known shoot down of this kind of platform was by Ukrain who went to great lengths to locate the Russian version of the AWACS known as the A-50 Beriev and shoot it down as it was loitering in the Sea of Azov. These platforms are very expensive as well and the crew onboard is highly trained. The loss was a huge blow to the RUAF as well as a great accomplishment for Ukraine who seem to be able to destroy high value targets throughout the conflict. This is right up there with the sinking of the Moskva.
Howdy, small correction: the E-3 and E-7 have similar detection ranges. The comm ranges and ECW/ECCW are likewise similar. The biggest problem with the E-3 is that it lacks the full 360 detection at all times, needing the rotodome to rotate between zones of interest. The E-7 eliminates this issue entirely. With the E-3, battlefield management has to fold in tactical use of the dome alongside other critical decisions.
Killing AWACS is what the J-20 was developed for. Measure, countermeasure, the eternal dance of war.
Add the MQ-28 Ghost Bat to the E-7 and they become very hard to shoot down…
@@allangibson8494 the MQ-28 is not able to do that job, lacking sufficient radar signature, plus it is not in service.
@adamsfusion Don't forget Air Battle Management too.......with a bit of Air Control.
The tail might fall off... it's Boeing
Don’t let Boeing hear you saying that. 😅
Ahhh fact boy talking about planes ❤❤❤ scratches the special interest nerve beautifully 🎉
Damn Australia apparently has a history of developing spy planes that America wants. The MQ28 Ghost Bat being the new drone.
Australia seems to be the Guinea pig that pays for all the bugs to get worked out first. 🎉😂
The Wedgetail is named after the Australian Wedgetail Eagle, and the Ghost Bat is an Australian bat😊.
Australia faces enemies. They USA has to travel 10 time zones to find an enemy.
I think request is more accurate over development. Boeing made them and Boeing is American.
@@ThatAirplaneGuy2000Boeing Australia made both. Boeing might be an American company but its Australian branch made them, and Australia paid for both.
E-7... since we love giving our aircraft nicknames... I vote for calling them "Chief." That is an E7 in the US NAVY and sounds way better than the E7 version of any other branch.
Wedgie in Australia
better than "gunny"? no way
lol rather Australian Eagle close to largest in the world then a boring old US Navy Chief who did not even design this plane
HAVE YOU EVEN FOUND YOURSELF STA-
“Super advanced drones!” *proceeds to show Shahed 136* 😂
Wedge Tails, Ghost bats. Australia punches above its weight and has cool names. :)
A quick history on the competition that led to the E-7 being selected by the RAAF
There were 3 competitors
Raytheon with the Israeli Phalcon system with a rotating radome mounted on Airbus A-310s
Lockheed-Martin/Northrup Grumman with the E-2 system with a rotating radome mounted on C-130Js
The Boeing E-7
Surprisingly the E-3 system (would have been mounted like Japan on a 767) was considered far more capable than the RAAF wanted. The first 2 were advanced 2nd gen systems, the E-7 a revolutionary 3rd gen system. It was somewhat of a surprise when selected.
And Russia has lost two AWACS in the last couple of months. Russia has 10? 8? 6? left to cover all its territory.
Australia's Wedgetails entered service in 2008, they are currently deployed in Europe, I can only imagine what for.
I thought the US had already begun to purchase these planes. It fits with the new doctrine in the United States armed forces to use off the shelf parts, whenever they can.
What the US is getting is a "basic dumbdowned" version.......the RAAF and our government WILL NOT release the software outside of our military and we don't fly them out of US bases due to national security concerns
Using a mass produced base.👍🏽
It’s about the contents not the air frame. The staff, avionics, radars, lidars, lasers, radio receivers….
Easy to replace the airframe but not the rest.
Een Australeeah, first you get the Wedge Tail, den you get de power, den you get de weemen...
The way Simon adds ''A''' and ''O'' before or after words that need none is quite unnerving!.
Not to mention the Wedge Tail is one of the top 5 largest birds of prey. They catch 20lb wallabies/kangaroos, fly them up to over 150m over a rock/stone field to drop them. Too big to kill? I'll let gravity do it for me
Shit, murder on the brain.
Well, you did say Bird of Prey.
When it comes to a Bird of Prey I know. I'll stick with the YF-118G....rofl
They also play 'games' with dogs, hovering above them and dropping sticks to see how high they can jump and stuff.
It will always be called the Wedge tail to me mate . 👌👌
AWACs A-WAX is how I remember it.
@@spinkid2000 Yes I remember that , we are getting old mate
@@spinkid2000The E-7 was AEW&C from the start. Those that worked in the program would give you a bombastic side eye if you referred to it as an AWAC (as the E-3 is known)
designed by australians, so you know it has adequate beer storage
And the doors wont fall off 😅
Not really designed by Australia, it was a response to an Australian requirement. But yes, beer storage is adequate.
@thelandofnod123 it was built from the ground up.......the physical platform and the software technology was all Australian designed for our specific regional threats. ........hence why we can tell ANYONE who wants to buy it that they can only procure dumbed down "export platforms "
@@richardcostello360 Well no, that’s not correct. The RAAF needed a platform, the Government issued a request for information and whittled the choices down to three. Boeing won the contract and was responsible for delivering the project. The DMO was responsible for overseeing the project however Boeing was able to ignore requests from the DMO during design, development and production to deliver the platform as they saw fit.
The 737 aircraft rolled off the production line as a 737-700 and was then sent to be modified. The first 2 aircraft were produced in Seattle with the remainder modified in Australia. The main sub contractors were BAe and Northrop Grumman. The Australian government were responsible for procuring certain items though FMS from the US and supply them to Boeing as they were not able to purchase them themselves. Local production of components was also hampered because of the inability of the transfer of technology to Australian companies.
To say that only dumb down versions can be sold and Australia must approve them is nonsense. Australia did not control the technology nor were they responsible for producing it. Turkey and South Korea signed contracts for their platforms 2 and 4 years after Australia. Both of them and subsequent countries have their platforms tailored to their needs and not Australia’s.
@@rjswas the front, on the other hand...
You mention the Saab alternative, please make a video about that! :)
The Orcs just claimed that they shot down their own A-50. 😂
Always loved that the Nebula class starship in star trek that was inspired by EWAC planes.
The Wedgetail eagle makes the Bald eagle look like a chicken.
I would love to see a video about A-50 Beriev AEW, especially in light that Ukraine Arm Forces managed to down two of them in a month. Until recently I thought they probably were unreachable to be shot down but I was very pleased to see news about them being downed. Thanks in advance! Love your channel.
8:44 : Man!!! That's some serious tech!!!
Russians lost two A50s in just one month :-)
Fun fact about wedgetail eagles they are the inspiration for the bent up tips on the wings of large airliners like the airbus. They also have a really awesome call which if you have ever heard the classic eagle call associated with the bald eagle that is actually the call of a wedgetail eagle.
That cut to ad @ 2:22 was absurd
My dad was born in 75 and he is loosing his dad soon your little comment about almost 50 made me think about the fleeting amount of time I have left with him and how quickly my first 30 years has gone and how soon the next will come
I’m going through the same thing. Love one another / be kind to one another. There are powers in control that want all of us gone.
Facts dude. I'm 72 model and my dad is going through his last breaths. Enjoy what you have, take nothing for granted.
Thank you both for your kind words I am fairing well each day is easier than the last my dad is doing well we had a wonderful dinner with each other last night for Easter I am blessed to have him
Simon...your reading capability is top-notch. Your math needs serious work though. 4+4+6 does not equal 12
CFM56 engines typically burn through a quart of oil every 5 hours if theyre in really good shape, and they hold 20 quarts, ao a Wedgetail can fly about 100 hours straight before the engines seize.
weve been running these for close on 16 years FOC, never seen or heard of any of them having an engine problem like that.
@@gfenwick1 WTF are you talking about? All jet engines burn a little oil. It's just what they do. I've literally never seen a jet engine that doesn't, and I've worked on hundreds of aircraft.
@echTalk FFS, I never said that - I said Ive never come across any of the reports on any of the aircraft having seized engines - and I was in the program from 2006 to 2015. there's never been any vendor reports around problem engines. prob half of the australian domestic large jet fleet uses these engines - and none of the civlian platforms have been down due to seized engines. That means they are being maintained with effect. A30-001 has been in service since 2004, these planes have been in service for between 20 and 9 years (A30-006)
100
HOURS
STRAIGHT
@echTalk unless the maintainers are ex garuda, then none of them would be falling asleep at the wheel, the nature of the support contract means that the vendor has self interest at work to do the job properly. without naming the vendor, their reputation in industry is to rape and pillage as thats how they get paid to meet the platform support KPI's. they set up a pure defence work division which ended up raiding their domestic support division because the rates paid on supporting RAAF was so much better. those frames are serviced well before hitting critical component support schedules. The RSP out of Aust is just as professional.
The danger of the internet where you lose contect could mean that you and I are on the same page but crossing in the night....
I used to fly ultralight aircraft. I clearly remember a wedgetail eagle flying off my wingtip and escorting me out of its airspace!
I assume you mean the bird... not the plane
@@adamwest1138 Funny. Yes the bird!
I've heard they're very territorial. I work in aviation and our ecologist has had his drone attacked by kites when he was using it for bird chasing and fence inspections. After that he wouldn't use it anywhere with Wedgetails. He said they'd likely destroy it, and possibly injure themselves@@chrisyoung7157
Hilarious and a true story.. those thing's do not care even when walk up to them as eating road kill. they own the land lol.
Most hang gliders that fly inland have been attacked by wedgies. They can do a lot of damage, very large claws. One used to pull the elastic of a particular gliders battens, causing it to fall out upon landing..
As MESA was being developed there were several articles about its potential Ground Moving Target Indicator (GMTI) capability. Upon the descision to adopt in the USAF all that info has dried up. The suggestion by many of us was for the E-3/E-8 and other 'Boutique Mission' USAF aircraft to be ruooled up into one. With sufficient computer power and some AI software that should be possible. With the advent of 'swarm attack' drones the track stores and radar target processing most likely needs an upgrade. Can we make a Quantim Computer that small?
ahh Back in the day's of the Nimrod and Ajax
The aircraft was developed to meet Aussie operational requirements, and later on it was selected by Turkish and South Korean Air Force. After more than decades, the aircraft is picked by USAF and RAF to replace aging E-3C. The only major issue that this aircraft facing, is that the cost per unit has skyrocketed. Indeed, South Korean Air Force is considering to acquire four more of this but they might choose alternative option if the price of this aircraft keep goes up.
1st time a saw a photo of the Wedgetail I thought, are they heading to the beach with a surfboard on top ?
😂That's funny I like that! 🇬🇧🤝🇦🇺👍🙂
Besides replacing the E-3, it also replaces the E-8 JSTARS which flew in combat for the first time during 1991 as a prototype and focused on ground moving target indicators. JSTARS recently stood down.
G'day, I live in Australia, and I have to say, the first time I saw an RAAF wedgetail I was a bit disappointed... I was expecting to see 'the top hat' for the radome not the long thin antenna of the wedgetail. Thanks to your video I now know that the wedgetail is the at the leading edge of current technologies.... AND WE GOT IT FIRST... suck that 'merica !!
So happy to see an Australian plane on this channel. Love your work. ❤🎉❤🎉
It's an American designed and built aircraft. The only Australian thing about it is the crew!
I love the fact your Default is Australia
One thing I didn’t see you mention is the wedetail is that the name was in part chosen because it’s the largest bird on our continent (Idk if you guys get them overseas? I think they’re in south east asia too)
The Wedgetail, an Australian eagle famous for its ability to to see tiny creatures from great distance. A great name for the aircraft. Great to see Australia at the forefront of modern warfare capabilities.
Have you done a Megaprojects on the NOAA hurricane hunters?
5:19 You're killing me, Brain Boy.
AWACS is like AJAX....🙄
🤣
here to say this it was driving me crazy
I live near and smaller airport that the military frequently uses to practice at and is isn't very busy. It is a FedEx hub so the runways are big enough for some bigger planes. I see some of these types of planes from time to time and it's really cool. My house is 7 minute driver from the airport so they are always flying really low. It's bad ass to see them so close. Does suck when the really big ones decide to do circles because it literally shakes the house lol.
until a couple of months ago, I used to see at least one Wedgetail fly over my town every day, usually late in the afternoon returning to its base, RAAF Williamtown NSW which is 47 km from my town. One was deployed to Europe to monitor the war in Ukraine, but I havent see any of the others recently
Look up Pitch Black 24
Lived in the east anglia in the UK in the 80s and early 90s near big US and UK airbases. Used to see lots of AWACS planes flying overhead.
(Had a bloodhound missile base down the road too)
The entire avionics system and radar system including the next generation which is shown what design built and manufactured by Hughes Aircraft Company. The initial design went airborne in late 1970's iirr with both the original and new radar arrays created by HAC scientists at the Hughes Research Lab in Malibu, California back in the late 80's........ today known as HRL.
14:58 Spectacular show of power
The successor of the Erieye, the Globaleye is just being shipped out now.
One of my best mates was/is? (ex/military mates get to catch you once a decade...) the lead project engineer/manager of the Wedgetail in the RAAF. Very proud of him I am, even if I never really know what he is up to anymore with my security clearance being long long gone decades ago. Now maybe its just an Aussie thing, but we just call them ''ayewacks'', never that abomination of a term dude was saying here, killing me on the inside just a bit every time I heard it.
Nope, always referred to them as AEW&C. Never AWAC.
@@thelandofnod123 weird, just weird
@@guyb7995 Weird but true, there was a good reason Simon kept referring to it as AEW&C and the E-3 as AWAC.
Made in Seattle. I said AWACS. My six year old son heard “A wax”
i know its a steerable electronic array and thus vastly superiour, but im gonna miss those beautiful radomes. Go wedgetail go. Unsung heros all.
Its capability also makes it the first target you go after. Would need lots of protection. In the way a carrier group protects the main asset, something would have to protect the Wedgetail?
A few Ghost Bats perhaps??
Ahhhh it's called the RAAF........literally the RAAF protects these as they do their business.......plus with nearly a 1000km range on a good day......well it's hard to sneak up on it
thats what the J2, J3's are there for...... theyre part of mission planning where you look at threats, boundaries etc.....
Yup, A Flying TACC....I was in a ground based one....very interesting....
Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi!
Made in America 😂😂😂
@@ianrichards909 Designed in Australia by Australian's at Boeing Australia even uses another Australian companies EWS system. yes EWS electronic warfare system.
Uses some of Australia JORN radar sensors technology also.
JORN is biggest most advanced radar in the world that even USA bought off Australia. Russia China and USA are 10 years behind in the technology.
I recently moved and I'm close to an airport.... two days ago I saw 2 planes in the sky I'd never seen before, they looked A Lot like these🤔
Missiles becoming faster, longer range, cheaper, and more accurate is very scary for something that practically broadcasts its location. We can’t make enough of these.