E-3 Sentry

The E-3 Sentry is an airborne warning and control system (AWACS) aircraft that provides all-weather surveillance, command, control and communications needed by commanders of U.S., NATO and other allied air defense forces. As proven in Operation Allied Force, it is the premier air battle command and control aircraft in the world today.

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The E-3 Sentry is a modified Boeing 707-320 commercial airframe with a rotating radar dome. The dome is 30 feet (9.1 m) in diameter, six feet (1.8 m) thick, and is held 14 feet (4.2 m) above the fuselage by two struts. It contains a radar subsystem that permits surveillance from the Earth's surface up into the stratosphere, over land or water. The radar has a range of more than 250 miles (375 km) for low-flying targets and beyond the horizon (approximately 400 miles, although the actual range is classified) for aerospace vehicles flying at medium to high altitudes. The radar combined with an IFF subsystem can look down to detect, identify and track enemy and friendly low-flying aircraft by eliminating ground clutter returns that confuse other radar systems.

AWACS: REDIRECT Airborne early warning and control...

NATO: :This Wikipedia article uses European English spelling because of NATO's historical use of this style as a standard. NATO is also an acronym for the National Association of Theatre Owners....

Operation Allied Force: Operation Allied Force was NATO's military operation against Yugoslavia in the spring of 1999. It was only the second major combat operation in NATO's history, following the September 1995 Operation Deliberate Force in Bosnia....

E-3 Sentry related Images and Photos (experimental)

The Age Of The Sentry #3 Cover: Sentry and Millie	The Age Of The Sentry #3 Group: Sentry Millie and Chili	Napoleon's Entry Into Cairo	Lone Sentry
The Troubadour's Entry	German Sentry Guards a Railway Bridge	Sentry Box at San Cristobal Fort El Morro San Juan Puerto Rico	French "Poilu" on Sentry Duty Behind the Maginot Line Poilu Means "Hairy One"
Tom Getting the Best of a Charley (The Night Watchman) by Emptying Him from His Sentry Box