#1611 E-3A AWACS and Sentry AEW1
Description
Squadron Prints Lithograph No. 1611 - LX-N90459 and ZH101, NATO Airborne Early Warning & Control Force, Geilenkirchen, Germany.
In the early 1970s, various NATO studies indicated that an airborne early warning (AEW) system would greatly enhance the Alliance’s existing airspace defence system. In December 1978 the members of NATO’s Defence Planning Committee signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the procurement and operational use of an AEW system. This decision by the member nations launched NATO’s largest procurement programme of that time. The NATO Airborne Early Warning & Control Force (NAEW&CF) was established in January 1980. At the end of 1988 the E 3A Component was declared fully operational. The E-3D Component achieved fully operational status on 1 July 1992. The NAEW&CF is located on NATO Airbase Geilenkirchen. NAEW&CF has two units with operational capability: The NATO E-3A Component in Geilenkirchen, Germany, with 14 E-3A aircraft, and the E-3D Component of the Royal Air Force in Waddington, UK, with three E-3D aircraft crewed solely by RAF personnel. The NAEW&CF is commanded on a rotational basis by either a US Air Force or a German Air Force Major General. The deputy commander is an RAF Air Commodore. The Force reports directly to the Supreme Allied Commander Europe.