The U.S. Navy’s PMA-271 (Airborne Strategic Command, Control, and Communications Program Office) has acquired a retired Royal Air Force E-3D for $15 million, which will be used as a training aircraft for the E-6B Mercury fleet.
Photo: U.S. Navy
It had been a goal of the program office to find a dedicated training aircraft for the fleet so that the current mission-capable E-6 could be used less frequently.
The Navy has sought ways to train and update E-6 pilots since the aircraft’s introduction over three decades ago.
The program has been seeking a dedicated trainer for several years and found one when the Royal Air Force retired its fleet of E-3Ds.
NAVAIR will modify the aircraft once it arrives, so it can be delivered to the fleet by October 2023.
It is estimated that the aircraft will help reduce 600 flight hours and 2,400 landings/cycles per year from the E-6 mission aircraft.
The E-6B is an aircraft that serves as an airborne communication and strategic command post.
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