Japan requests E-767 AWACS Mission Computing Upgrade
Japan is seeking to acquire an E-767 Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) Mission Computing Upgrade (MCU) from the US under a foreign military sale (FMS). The Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified US congress of the possible sale on 26 September.
If it goes ahead the $950 million FMS will include an E-767 AWACS MCU that includes four Electronic Support Measure (ESM) Systems, 8 AN/UPX-40 Next Generation Identify Friend or Foe (NGIFF), 8 AN/APX-119 IFF Transponder, and 4 KIV-77 Cryptographic Computers. Boeing will be the principal contractor on the programme.
Japan has operated the E-767 AWACS since the 1990s. The system is a modified version of the US Air Force’s E-3 Sentry.
The proposed sale will bring Japan an upgraded AWACS command and control capability, and will also allow Japan’s AWACS fleet to be more compatible with the US Air Force AWACS fleet baseline.
Design and kit production, support and test equipment, provisioning, spare and repair parts, personnel training and training equipment over an eight year period have also been requested by the Japanese government as part of the sale.
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