미 국방부, 2027 예산안에서 E-7 제외

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미공군, E-7A 도입 관련 24억 달러 추가 계약

미 국방부가 2027년 예산안에서 E-7A 관련 예산을 다시 없애버렸네요. 진짜 호주랑 한국 공군, 일본 항자대 조기경보기에 의존해서 인도태평양에서 작전 펼칠 생각인 건지.. 

펜타곤, 예산안에서 E-7 제외하며 미래 불투명해져

호주 공군 E-7A 웨지테일 1대, EA-18G 그라울러 제트기 2대, F-35A 라이트닝 II 제트기 2대, 미국 공군 B-2 폭격기 2대, F-22 랩터 전투기 2대가 편대 비행을 하고 있습니다. (호주 공군 사진: FSGT Christopher Dickson)

펜타곤은 2027회계연도 예산 요청안에 E-7A 웨지테일 관련 예산을 전혀 포함하지 않았으며, 이는 보잉이 제작한 E-3 센트리 공중조기경보통제기 후속 기종의 미래를 두고 의회와 또 다른 한판 승부를 예고하고 있습니다.

공군은 2026회계연도 예산에서 의회가 지시한 대로 E-7 시제기를 제작 중이며, 트로이 메인크 공군 차관보는 이 프로그램의 장기적 미래에 대해 의원들과 "논의"하겠다고 약속했습니다. 그러나 공군 대변인은 E-7 프로그램 계획에 대한 논평 요청에 즉각 응답하지 않았습니다.

전 공군 미래본부장인 S. 클린턴 하이노트 퇴역 중장은 4월 22일 신미국안보센터(CNAS)에서 열린 공중 전장 관리 관련 패널 토론에서, 공군이 웨지테일의 가치를 완전히 실현하기에는 도입 시기가 너무 늦었을 수 있다고 시사했습니다.

하이노트 중장은 "미래 공군을 준비하며 가졌던 큰 토론은 우리가 시기를 놓쳤는가 하는 것이었습니다. 즉, 결국 센서들을 분산시키게 될 것임을 알면서도 E-3를 다른 항공기로 교체할 시기를 놓쳤느냐는 것이죠. 솔직히 저는 그 논의가 오늘날에도 여전히 유효하다고 생각합니다"라고 말했습니다.

그는 이어 공군이 필요한 만큼의 E-7을 구매하지 않을 것이라고 생각하며, 미래의 공중전을 지휘하기 위해 호주와 영국군의 자산에 의존해야 할 수도 있다고 덧붙였습니다.

호주 공군의 E-7A 웨지테일이 남부 캘리포니아 상공을 비행하고 있습니다. (미 공군 사진: Richard Gonzales)

호주는 에픽 퓨리 작전(Operation Epic Fury) 기간 중인 3월 초, 아랍에미리트가 이란의 미사일과 드론을 격퇴하는 것을 돕기 위해 E-7을 중동에 배치했습니다.

지난 2월 AFA 전쟁 심포지엄에서 메인크 차관보가 남긴 발언을 고려할 때, 2027년 예산에서 E-7 관련 자금이 부족한 것은 그리 놀라운 일이 아닙니다. 당시 차관보는 장기적인 E-7 프로그램을 확약하지 않았으며, 의회의 요구대로 시제기를 제작하고 "계획을 제출"할 것이라고 기자들에게 말했습니다.

메인크 차관보는 2월에 "'계획을 제출한다'는 것이 예산에 반영하겠다는 의미는 아닙니다. 무엇이 필요한지에 대한 계획을 전달할 것이며, 그 후에 논의를 가질 것입니다"라고 말했습니다.

노후화된 기단
공군의 E-3 AWACS(공중조기경보통제기) 기체는 보잉 707을 기반으로 하고 있으며 유지보수가 점점 더 어려워지고 있습니다. 이번 회계연도 시작 시점에 함대에 남아 있는 기체는 단 16대뿐이며 평균 기령은 45년입니다. 공군 수치를 확인할 수 있는 마지막 해인 2024년 기준으로 이들의 임무 가능률(mission-capable rate)은 단 56%에 불과했습니다.

이들 AWACS 기체 중 6대가 에픽 퓨리 작전을 위해 배치되었으며, 그중 한 대는 3월 27일 사우디아라비아 프린스 술탄 공군 기지에 주차되어 있던 중 미사일과 드론의 일제 사격을 받아 파괴되었습니다.

35년의 복무를 마치고 2023년 퇴역한 하이노트 중장은 "그것들은 낡은 항공기들입니다. 매우 낡은 항공기들이죠. 파괴된 기체의 꼬리 번호는 810005입니다. 이는 공군이 1981년에 건조 계약을 맺었다는 의미입니다. 그때 저는 11살이었습니다"라고 말했습니다.

위험 완화
공중 전장 관리의 미래에 관한 3월 CNAS 보고서는 E-7이 고가이며 위협에 취약하다는 우려에도 불구하고, 공군 자산에 공중 전장 관리 플랫폼을 유지해야 한다는 논거를 제시했습니다.

보고서를 작성한 필립 시어스는 모든 공중 전장 관리 항공기는 적에게 필연적인 표적이라고 말했습니다. 다수의 해상 및 지상 방공망과 전투기를 포함한 중국의 접근 저지(anti-access) 무기들이 이들에게 집중될 것입니다. 그러나 시어스는 지상 기지와 우주 센서 사이에서 "중간 단계"의 지휘 통제권을 제공하는 것이 소홀히 하기에는 너무 중요하다고 주장합니다. 항공기의 기동성과 작전 센터의 데이터 처리 및 조정 능력을 결합한 이 항공기들은 필수적인 격차를 메워준다고 그는 설명합니다.

그는 E-7의 탐지 능력이 저고도 드론 및 크루즈 미사일 위협을 탐지하고 처리하는 데 지상 기반 센서보다 우수하며, 19명의 승무원 중에 포함된 온보드 전문가들이 다양한 소스에서 오는 방대한 양의 센서 데이터를 분석하고 지시한다고 썼습니다.

미 공군의 E-3 센트리 AWACS 항공기가 2026년 3월 31일 에픽 퓨리 작전을 지원하기 위해 비행하고 있습니다. (미 공군 사진)

시어스는 공군이 공중 전장 관리 항공기를 무인 자율 항공기와 함께 사용하여, 무인기가 플랫폼을 보호하고 탐지를 돕는 호위기 역할을 하도록 운용할 것을 촉구했습니다.

예산 전쟁
2024년에 공군은 AWACS를 대체하기 위해 기단을 26대의 E-7으로 확장할 계획을 세우고 보잉과 2대의 E-7 시제기 제작을 위한 25억 달러 규모의 계약을 체결했습니다. 그러나 작년 새 행정부가 들어서면서 펜타곤은 태도를 바꿔 프로그램 취소를 모색했습니다. 이는 거센 반발을 불러일으켰습니다. 6명의 전직 공군 참모총장과 9명의 퇴역 4성 장군들이 공군우주군협회(AFA)와 뜻을 같이하며 의회에 예산 복구를 촉구했습니다.

의회는 이에 동의하여 펜타곤에 시제기 제작을 완수하고 프로그램에 대해 보고할 것을 지시했습니다. 의회는 프로그램 유지를 위해 11억 달러를 책정했으며, 공군이 "요구 사항을 간소화하고 향후 E-7 항공기 생산 비용을 통제하기 위한 진행 중인 조치들"에 대한 계획을 제공할 것을 의무화했습니다.

해당 보고서는 5월 초에 제출될 예정이며, 그 이후부터 본격적인 논쟁이 시작될 것입니다.

Pentagon Zeroes Out E-7 in Budget, Leaving Its Future Uncertain

A Royal Australian Air Force E-7A Wedgetail, two EA-18G Growler jets, two F-35A Lightning II jets, two United States Air Force B-2 Bombers, and two F-22 Raptor fighter jets fly in formation. (Royal Australian Air Force photo by FSGT Christopher Dickson)

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Pentagon Zeroes Out E-7 in Budget, Leaving Its Future Uncertain

April 22, 2026 | By Todd South

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The Pentagon did not include any funding for the the E-7A Wedgetail in its 2027 budget request, potentially setting up another round in its fight with Congress over the future of the Boeing-built successor to the E-3 Sentry Airborne Early Warning and Control jet.

The Air Force is building E-7 prototypes as directed by Congress in the fiscal 2026 budget, and Air Force Secretary Troy Meink has promised a “discussion” with lawmakers about the long-term future of the program. But an Air Force spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on E-7 program plans.

Retired Lt. Gen. S. Clinton Hinote, former head of Air Force Futures, suggested the service may have waited too long in procuring the Wedgetail to realize its full value during a panel focused on airborne battle managament at the Center for a New American Security on April 22.

“The big discussion that we were having as we were preparing for the future Air Force was, did we miss the window—meaning, did we miss the window of replacing the E-3 with another aircraft, knowing that we would eventually distribute the sensors?” Hinote said. “Frankly, I think that discussion is still valid today.”

The retired three-star later added that he didn’t think the Air Force would buy as many E-7s as it needs and may need to rely on those in the Australian and British military to help quarterback an air fight in the future.

A Royal Australian Air Force E-7A Wedgetail soars over Southern California. (U.S. Air Force photo by Richard Gonzales)

Australia deployed an E-7 to the Middle East to help the United Arab Emirates defeat Iranian missiles and drones in early March during Operation Epic Fury.

The lack of funds for the E-7 in 2027 was hardly a surprise, given Meink’s comments at AFA’s Warfare Symposium in February. The secretary declined then to commit to a long-term E-7 program and told reporters that the service would build the prototypes and “deliver a plan” as required by Congress.

“By the way, ‘deliver a plan’ does not mean we’re going to put it in the budget,” Meink said in February. “We’ll deliver a plan of what it takes to do, and then we’ll have a discussion.”

An Aging Fleet

The Air Force’s E-3 AWACS jets are based on Boeing’s 707 and are increasingly challenging to maintain. Only 16 jets remained in the fleet at the start of this fiscal year, and they averaged 45 years old. In 2024, the last year for which Air Force figures are available, their mission-capable rate was just 56 percent.

Six of those AWACS birds deployed for Operation Epic Fury and one was destroyed March 27 while parked at Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, when it was struck with a volley of missiles and drones.

“Those are old aircraft, they are very old aircraft,” said Hinote, who retired in 2023 after 35 years of service. “The tail number on that aircraft is 810005. What that means is that the airplane was contracted by the Air Force to build in 1981. I was 11.”

Mitigating Risk

A March CNAS report on the future of air battle management made the case for retaining an aerial battle management platform in the Air Force inventory, despite concerns that the E-7 is both expensive and vulnerable to threats.

Philip Sheers, who authored the report, said any air battle management aircraft is an inevitable target for an adversary. China’s anti-access weaponry, which includes a host of maritime and ground-based air defenses as well as fighter aircraft, will focus on them. But Sheers argues that providing a “middle tier” of command and control between ground bases and space sensors is too important to neglect. Combining an aircraft’s mobility with the data processing and coordinating capabilities of an operations center, these planes fill a vital gap, he says.

The E-7’s sensing is superior to ground-based sensors for detecting and handling low-altitude drone and cruise missile threats, he wrote, and its 19-person crew provides on-board specialists to analyze and direct vast amounts of sensor data from various sources.

A U.S. Air Force E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft flies in support of Operation Epic Fury, March 31, 2026. (U.S. Air Force photo)

Sheers called for the Air Force to use airborne battle management aircraft in conjunction with uncrewed autonomous aircraft as escorts that could both protect and sense for the platform.

Budget Battles

In 2024, the Air Force awarded Boeing a $2.5 billion contract to build two E-7 prototypes, with plans to expand the fleet to 26 E-7s to replace the AWACS. But last year, with the arrival of a new administration, the Pentagon reversed course, seeking to cancel the program. That caused an outcry: Six former Air Force Chiefs of Staff and nine other retired 4-star generals joined the Air & Space Forces Association in urging Congress to reinstate funding.

Congress agreed, directing the Pentagon to follow through on the prototypes and report back on the program. Congress appropriated $1.1 billion to keep the program going and mandated that the Air Force provide a plan for “ongoing actions to streamline requirements and control costs on future production of the E-7 aircraft.”

That report is due in early May, after which the debates will begin in earnest.