Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has had discussions with NATO allies on the potential procurement of Saab’s GlobalEye as a replacement for the E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System fleet.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Procurement decisions by any other NATO nation are fully a matter for that nation and NATO. The MOD will continue with its procurement of Wedgetail to meet national and NATO requirements for Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) which will be interoperable with allies. Wedgetail has superior speed, range, persistence and crew capacity over alternative platforms. Furthermore, the Wedgetail has a more powerful radar with increased detection capability providing far earlier threat detection against more challenging targets at range.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the special clearance for the Royal Air Force’s E-7 Wedgetail applies to the whole fleet; and for what reason that clearance is required.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Wedgetail is not flying under any special clearance. The aircraft Test and Evaluation programme is being conducted under a Military Permit To Fly in accordance with Military Aviation Authority regulations. This allows the aircraft to be flown by Boeing during the test programme until delivery to the RAF. Once in Service the aircraft will have a Release to Service for flying. Safety is our number one priority, and we will always be complaint with regulations.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the (a) radar and (b) battle management systems were activated during the Royal Air Force’s E-7 Wedgetail test flight on 10 July 2025.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
This flight was a post-modification test flight to confirm the aircraft systems function correctly. Mission system testing will commence in autumn 2025 as part of a planned Test and Evaluation schedule.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for what reason the Royal Air Force’s E-7 Wedgetail fleet will be supported in the United States; and what the cost is of that support contract.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK E-7 will be supported and maintained in the United Kingdom. Following the approval of the Full Business Case, the sustainment contract is under negotiation.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of South Korea’s decision to explore alternatives for its E-7 Wedgetail replacement.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Procurement decisions by any other nation are fully a matter for that nation.