South Korea initiated the AEW&C II program in 2020 to complement its fleet of 4 E-737s that had been experiencing low mission availability charges.
South Korea’s Protection Acquisitions and Program Administration (DAPA) introduced on Sep. 30, 2025, U.S firm L3Harris because the winner of the competitors for the subsequent AEW&C (Airborne Early Warning and Management) plane of the ROKAF (Republic of Korea Air Drive), experiences from Seoul stated.
Designated the AEW&C II, 4 of the platforms will likely be inducted by 2032 for 3.0975 trillion gained ($2.2 billion), the 171st Protection Acquisition Program Promotion Committee determined. The L3Harris system relies on the Bombardier International 6500 enterprise jet, with the CAEW (Conformal Airborne Early Warning)-type plane carrying an Israeli ELTA EL/W-2085 radar, in keeping with Yonhap. A fact-sheet by L3Harris says the Israeli system is a dual-band system with GaN (Gallium Nitride) expertise.
The aggressive bidding beat out the opposite contender, the Saab GlobalEye AEW&C system. A November 2024 direct FMS (International Army Gross sales) approval from the U.S. of 4 extra E-7s now additionally stands cancelled.
The ROKAF already operates 4 E-7A Wedgetails, domestically designated because the E-737, that had been inducted by 2012 beneath the Peace Eye mission. These plane had nonetheless been experiencing low mission availability charges.
軍, 차기 항공통제기로 美 L3해리스의 글로벌6500 선정 – 조선비즈
보잉의 입찰 포기로 L3해리스 vs 사브 2파전이긴 했음
이걸로 한국 공군 조기 경보 통제기는 이원화
— Alis volat propriis (@Alisvolatprop12) September 30, 2025
Manufacturing and acquisition
Typically, such cross-company partnerships would see L3Harris endeavor the modifications on the International 6500, integration of the radar and mission programs, together with the ultimate plane rollout. For the South Korean program, L3Harris has been asserting agreements and enterprise interactions with Korean Air since 2023.
A type of stated: “Korean Air has participated from the beginning and can present engineering and can lead in-country modification and testing actions of plane three and 4. Korean Air can even lead in-country sustainment of this system.”
A scale mannequin of the L3Harris-ELTA-Bombardier CAEW system was additionally displayed on the TADTE 2025 in Taiwan, because the island seems to be to interchange its older E-2K AEW&Cs.
L3Harris beforehand displayed scale fashions of three different International 6500-based electromagnetic sensing plane at South Korea’s Aerospace Convention in 2024. The CAEW was designated “Phoenix” and the EW/jamming and ISTAR platforms referred to as “Crow” and “Griffon,” respectively, with all of them proven in ROKAF marking.
In an Business Day L3Harris and Korean Air participated in on Aug. 13, 2024, L3Harris’ launch quoted president of ISR Sector Jason Lambert, who stated “If L3Harris’ International 6500 AEW&C answer is chosen, we’ll harness the facility of strategic, home industrial collaboration to attain our objective of Korean Made – Korean Operated – Korean Maintained. We’re obsessed with fortifying native business with new plane modification, mission system manufacturing, logistics, and upkeep, restore and institution (MRO) capabilities.”
Lambert’s assertion additionally implied two of the 4 plane will likely be purchased in a flyaway situation from L3Harri’s services within the U.S.
Korean Air’s president of the Aerospace Enterprise Division Jung Woo Park specified the corporate will safe “the newest particular mission plane modification, integration and upkeep expertise in-country and contribute to broaden the scope of home participation.” He additional added “We additionally plan to contribute to steady logistics help by securing a complicated MRO middle for the Republic of Korea AEW&C program.”
On the time of writing there was no assertion from L3Harris relating to the collection of its proposal.
How the winner was chosen
Quoting DAPA, Yonhap stated that L3Harris secured a “larger analysis rating” than the “solely different contender” within the bidding, which was the Swedish protection agency Saab. Whereas the U.S. was not taking part within the aggressive bidding tender, it had clarified previously that its FMS provide remained on the desk when Seoul introduced the subsequent section of the AEW&C mission in 2020.
Yonhap’s Korean language model additional make clear L3Harris’ closing choice by quoting DAPA, saying there was “no vital distinction” within the core technical efficiency of each the Saab and the L3Harris’ programs.
“L3 Harris obtained excessive scores within the areas of operational suitability, home protection business contribution, and operation and upkeep prices, whereas Saab obtained excessive scores within the areas of contract phrases and acquisition prices. Because of synthesizing the scores for every analysis merchandise, L3 Harris obtained a excessive rating,” the report added. The GlobalEye is equally primarily based on the Bombardier International 6000/6500 enterprise jet.
L3Harris showcased a mannequin of the International 6500 “Phoenix” AEW&C on the #TADTE2025. The plane, primarily based on the Bombardier International 6500 enterprise jet, is supplied with the latest-generation EL/W-2085 CAEW (L&S) dual-band AESA radar from Israeli firm ELTA Techniques, utilizing GaN… pic.twitter.com/0rnRYuRI8c
— 笑脸男人 (@lfx160219) September 20, 2025
South Korea’s AEW&C II program had stalled
The Protection Acquisition and Program Administration (DAPA) launched the AEW&C II program in 2020 for acquisition by 2027. Then, in November 2024, the U.S. authorised a possible sale to Seoul of 4 E-7As beneath the FMS (International Army Gross sales) route for $4.92 billion, to complement the present fleet of 4 E-737s/E-7s.
Nonetheless, the AEW&C II program had stalled in keeping with Australian Defence Journal, which reported on Jul. 17, 2025, that the bidding rounds have failed because the affords “exceeded this system funds of $2.6 billion, with experiences suggesting negotiations had additionally run into difficulties over fee schedules.” Because it now seems, these points have now been resolved.
Present South Korean AEW&C functionality
As beforehand talked about, the ROKAF presently operates 4 E-7A Wedgetails with the native designation E-737, acquired beneath the Peace Eye program for $1.6 billion. All of them had been delivered by October 2012. The primary of the plane was manufactured and missionized at Boeing’s facility in Seattle, Washington, whereas Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) carried out the mixing on the remaining three airframes at Sacheon in South Korea.
ROKAF E-737 Peace Eye (64-700) PUS/RKPK April 2023 pic.twitter.com/7WnwANCrhV
— Andrei (@Andrei32989622) Might 3, 2023
In ROKAF’s service, the E-737 has acute serviceability points and low availability charges. In October 2019, South Korean each day Munhwahlbo reported a ROKAF doc submitted to lawmakers citing frequent failures since 2015, failing to fulfill a focused availability price of 75%. The degraded airborne radar surveillance weakens the nation’s protection towards North Korea’s increasing ballistic and cruise missile program.
DAPA now stated the acquisition will “guarantee round the clock aerial surveillance capabilities towards enemy air threats throughout each wartime and peacetime, and to allow impartial and environment friendly air management operations by the South Korean navy.”
The E-7 program can be beneath risk within the U.S. the place the 2026 funds favors cuts to this system. The system is already operated by the Turkish Air Drive and the Royal Australian Air Drive, with the Royal Air Drive getting ready to induct it and NATO being a future consumer. The Wedgetail will change NATO’s fleet of 14 E-3 AWACS (Airborne Early Warning and Management System), with the primary supply scheduled for 2031.
