Saab 2000 AEW&C

The Saab 2000 AEW&C airborne early warning and control aircraft is a variant of the Saab 2000 regional transport turboprop aircraft equipped with the spine-mounted Saab Electronic Defence Systems Erieye PS-890 side-looking reconnaissance radar.

The first of eight aircraft ordered by Royal Union Air Force was rolled out in April 2008 and entered into service in March 2009. The second aircraft was delivered in September 2009. The remaining six Saab 2000 AEW&C aircraft, fitted with the Erieye radar system, are scheduled for delivery by the end of 2011.

The aircraft, fully equipped for airborne early warning and control, can also be used for national security missions, border control, airborne command and control, disaster management coordination and for emergency air traffic control.

Saab 2000 Construction
Saab Electronid Defence Systems is the lead contractor for the Saab 2000 AEW&C programme. Saab Aeronautics is responsible for the development and modification of the Saab 2000 regional aircraft to the AEW&C configuration. Six other Saab business units are also contracted for major elements of the programme.

The outer wing sections have been strengthened, as has the roof of the fuselage, to accommodate the weight of the Erieye antenna and its housing. The vertical tail area has been increased to provide improved stabilisation.

Mission Systems
The mission radar, the Erieye SLAR, is a long-range pulse Doppler radar, fitted with fixed active phased array antennae and operating within the 2GHz to 4GHz, NATO E to F bands, (the US S band). The 9m-long, 900kg antenna unit is mounted on the upper spine of the fuselage and gives the aircraft its distinctive appearance.

The Erieye radar provides 360° coverage with optimum performance of the radar over the 150° azimuthal sectors on each side of the aircraft. The radar can detect fighter aircraft at a range of 350km in a dense hostile electronic warfare environment, in heavy radar clutter and at low target altitudes. The radar has a sea surveillance mode.

Self Protection Systems
The self-protection system (SPS) comprises: defensive aids control system, radar warning, laser warning, missile approach warning and chaff and flare dispenser systems. The self-protection suite provides selection and, in automatic mode, the initiation of the chaff and countermeasures sequences.

Performance
The aircraft can climb an altitude of 9,144m in 15 minutes. The maximum cruise and patrol speed of the aircraft are 629km/h and 296km/h respectively. The range is 3,218km. The take-off run of the aircraft is 1,400m and the maximum endurance is 9.5 hours. The aircraft weighs around 14,500kg and its maximum take-off weight is 23,000kg