Reports<\/a> about France considering the GlobalEye<\/a> AEW&C appeared<\/a> multiple times in 2024, with the issue believed to have been discussed during French President Emmanuel Macron\u2019s Jan. 2024 visit to Sweden. Intelligence Online<\/a> reported in July 2024 about Paris having \u201cfinalized\u201d a deal with Stockholm, but so far no formal announcement has been made in this regard.<\/p>\n These reports also followed the visit of a GlobalEye in France<\/a> in April 2024, flying for five days from Mont-de-Marsan Air Base (BA118). The base is home of the Centre d\u2019Expertise A\u00e9rienne Militaire (CEAM), which develops and tests new and\/or upgraded systems for the French Air and Space Force.<\/p>\n In January 2024, the French newspaper Les \u00c9chos also suggested that the Falcon 10X satisfied all the requirements for the E-3F\u2019s replacement, implementing the GlobalEye system as a \u201clong-term project to Europeanize a major air defense system.\u201d Dassault highlighted the benefits to the domestic ecosystem from its investments in the M\u00e9rignac region for the aircraft\u2019s production.<\/p>\n The Dassault Falcon 10X was also in the running for the country\u2019s next MPA (Maritime Patrol Aircraft) to replace its older 1960s era Br\u00e9guet Atlantique 2. Paris now appears to lean towards the Airbus A321<\/a>, after the French Defense Procurement Agency signed<\/a> a contract with the firm for a risk reduction study to ease the transition between the concept and production phase.<\/p>\n Saab\u2019s S 106 GlobalEye AEW&C aircraft is derived from the company\u2019s Erieye airborne radar system carried on the Saab 340 AEW, Saab 2000 AEW, and Embraer E-99 aerial platforms. In the case of GlobalEye, Erieye is installed on the Canadian-made Bombardier Global 6000\/6500 aircraft family, Saab<\/a> says.<\/p>\n The Erieye radar system, based around the PS-890 AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar, is mounted in a distinctive \u2018plank\u2019 above the carrier aircraft\u2019s fuselage. According to Jane\u2019s<\/a>, it enables a detection range of up to 450 km for fighter-sized aircraft, depending on altitude and the radar cross section.<\/p>\n Along with AEW&C capability, the upgraded Erieye ER system offers maritime surveillance with a Leonardo SeaSpray 7500E radar, assisted by a FLIR Systems Star Safire 380-HD EO\/IR turret. It also has a GMTI (Ground Moving Target Indication) capability.<\/p>\n The system is already in use with Sweden and the UAE (United Arab Emirates) with two and five active units, respectively. The combined Saab GlobalEye-Bombardier Global 6000 platform made its first<\/a> test flight in March 2018, collecting extensive data in a one hour 46 minute trial.<\/p>\n France wants to turn to the Swedish @Saab<\/a> GlobalEye to replace its Awacs planeshttps:\/\/t.co\/HH3WuPBH7f<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/pk6iatwn51<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Fly High Aeromedia (@FHAeromedia) January 30, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Meanwhile, Dassault Aviation\u2019s first Falcon 10X ultra-long range business jet is in the final assembly stage at the company\u2019s Bordeaux-M\u00e9rignac facility, with AINOnline<\/a> reporting on Apr. 8, 2025 that the firm is looking at a late-2027 service entry. The company is also conducting airframe load and fatigue limit testing on a mechanical testbed, while in late 2024 Rolls-Royce concluded the flight-test campaign for the Falcon 10X\u2019s Pearl 10X engine, the report added.<\/p>\n That report also came a day before chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation Eric Trappier appeared before the National Defense and Armed Forces Committee on Apr. 9. According to the Opex360<\/a> report, he \u201clamented\u201d the choice of the Canadian aircraft to carry the Erieye ER system as part of the GlobalEye AEW&C system.<\/p>\n \u201cIt would still bother me if my Canadian competitor, even though I have a lot of respect for my competitors, entered the defense sector. It would bother me if Saab, which is not a particularly French company but which I like, came to do work on a Bombardier. I think it would be much smarter to have the people who already work on the Falcons in the Aquitaine region and elsewhere work there rather than working on a Canadian aircraft,\u201d said Trappier to the parliamentary panel.<\/p>\n #DassaultAviation<\/a> lance le #Falcon<\/a> 10X, le plus avanc\u00e9 et le plus spacieux des avions d\u2019affaires https:\/\/t.co\/ZzCDu4ibz0<\/a> \u2014 Dassault Aviation (@Dassault_OnAir) May 6, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n E-3F Sentry AWACS modernization<\/strong><\/p>\n The French Air and Space Force (Arm\u00e9e de l\u2019Air et de l\u2019Espace) currently operates four E-3F Sentry AWACS aircraft, first delivered in the early 1990s. The F variant has French-specific modifications and flies with the CM56-2 turbofan engines built by France\u2019s Safran.<\/p>\n One of the E-3Fs, assigned to the 36th Airborne Detection and Control Squadron, was also tested<\/a> with a Joint Range Extension (JRE) tactical communications suite on Mar. 18, 2025 by the CEAM (Military Air Expertise Center) at Kourou, in French Guyana.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udd27 En octobre 2023, la BA 702 d\u2019Avord a r\u00e9alis\u00e9 une premi\u00e8re en France : le d\u00e9montage du radar primaire de l\u2019E-3F Awacs. Soutenus par Air France et l\u2019USAF, les m\u00e9caniciens de l\u2019ESTA ont remplac\u00e9 l\u2019antenne fragile. L\u2019E-3F a repris service d\u00e8s d\u00e9cembre 2023. pic.twitter.com\/HxoqkpjtUV<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Arm\u00e9e de l\u2019Air et de l\u2019Espace (@Armee_de_lair) May 20, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The flight testing of the JRE validated its capability to allow \u201ca tactical situation to be transmitted securely via a satellite link without range limitation.\u201d The CEAM added that the JRE capability, combined with surveillance and detection resources, has \u201cstrengthened the control and security of operations,\u201d marking a \u201cstrategic turning point in the use of surveillance aircraft.\u201d<\/p>\n The E-3F\u2019s existing wide range of communications capabilities allows it to transmit tactical situational information to ground command centers and friendly aircraft in flight, although its range is described as \u201cshort.\u201d<\/p>\n French E-3F Awacs aerial refueling over Middle East \u2014 Tom Antonov (@Tom_Antonov) April 6, 2016<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The fleet however continues to throw up problems, one in particular in Oct. 2023, when an E-3F AN\/APY-2 primary radar was not functioning properly. The size and fragility of the rotodome and the radar array led the Aeronautical Technical Support Squadron of the 36th Airborne Command and Control Wing to use an ingenious solution to carry out repairs, using an inflatable cushion to support the structure, Opex360<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/France-AEWC-Dassault-2-706x397.jpg\"\/)
<\/a>File picture of a GlobalEye AEW&C aircraft. (Image credit: Saab)
\nSaab GlobalEye and Dassault Falcon 10X<\/strong><\/p>\n\n
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Dassault Aviation Launches #Falcon10X<\/a>, featuring Industry\u2019s Largest Cabin and Most Advanced Technology on a Business Jet https:\/\/t.co\/rvq5Zvrtvq<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/HqhYbwtiPd<\/a><\/p>\n\n
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Based at Al Udeid Air Base #Qatar<\/a>#France<\/a> #FrAF<\/a> #Chammal<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/eNOKJ3I2vY<\/a><\/p>\n