Boeing E-3B Sentry

15 aircraft

The E-3A (TF33) Sentry revolutionized airborne surveillance as the world's premier Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS), capable of detecting air targets at greater distances and lower altitudes than ground-based radar systems. First flown in 1972, it was a four-engine turbofan adaptation of the Boeing 707-320B commercial airliner, distinguished by its massive 30-foot diameter rotating radar dome mounted above the fuselage. Measuring 153 feet in length with a 146-foot wingspan and powered by four Pratt & Whitney TF33 engines producing over 20,000 pounds of thrust each, the aircraft achieved an operational range exceeding 5,000 nautical miles. The E-3A was manufactured by Boeing Aircraft Company between 1975 and 1984.