Article Posted on : - Feb 11, 2014

Turkey's first Peace Eagle Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft. A Boeing photo.

KONYA, TURKEY (BNS): Turkey has taken delivery of the first Peace Eagle Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft from US defence major Boeing.

Boeing delivered the aircraft to Konya Air Base, the fleet's main operating base.

Two more AEW&C aircraft are to be delivered this year, with the fourth in 2015. The AEW&C is based on the Boeing 737-700 airplane.

With this delivery, the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) now has advanced airborne surveillance and battle management capabilities, and can simultaneously track airborne and maritime targets.

In addition to the aircraft, the Peace Eagle programme includes ground support segments for mission crew training, mission support and system maintenance.

Turkey joins Australia and South Korea as operators of AEW&C platforms.

"The Peace Eagle programme is an example of great cooperation among the Turkish government and our excellent Turkish industry teammates, including Turkish Aerospace Industries, HAVELSAN, Turkish Airlines and MiKES," said Mark Ellis, Peace Eagle programe manager for Boeing.