Ukrainian MoD stated that the ASC 890 AWACS delivered by Sweden has been flying since March 2026 to support situational awareness in the air domain.
2026’s second quarter came with a strategic asset for Ukraine to improve its foothold in the air domain: the ASC 890 AWACS delivered by Sweden, as reported by Defence Blog.
The AWACS, based on the turboprop-powered airliner Saab 340, was delivered roughly a year ago as a part of Sweden’s aid to Ukraine. The aid includes two aircraft.
Using the Erieye S-band AESA radar with a bi-planar array structure, ASC 890 has a left/right FoV of 120 degrees. The radar has an instrumented range between 350 km and 450 km, depending on target type.
The main importance of ASC 890 for Ukraine is the fact that it is far less limited by terrain clutter and the horizon effect. This allows ASC 890 to detect low-flying targets like cruise missiles or heavy kamikaze UAVs (Specifically Geran series).
On the other hand, the command and control capability of ASC 890 renders it a coordination node for the Ukrainian F-16 fighters. Having a long-range flying sensor and coordinator is important for the Ukrainian F-16s and other Western-made fighters to come (Such as Mirage 2000 and Gripen), as they are low in numbers and are at best matched in terms of firing range when encountering Russian fighters, which might carry long-range BVRAAMs like the R-37M. R-37M specifically is a disruptive, if not deadly, threat to Ukrainian aircraft, as they are forced to take acute evasive action to avoid being hit. Detecting Russian fighters that might be armed with long-range missiles earlier than they used to be can at least allow Ukrainian aircraft to preemptively evade the threat more smoothly.
However, Ukraine’s need for longer-range air-to-air missiles like Meteor or AIM-120D persists in order to stop rolling the dice when attacking positions covered by Russian fighters.