Air Force designates new aircraft
by 1st Lt. Andre Kok
Electronic Systems Center Public Affairs
02/28/03 - HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. (AFPN) -- The Air Force recently designated its new multisensor command and control aircraft the E-10A.
The "E" designation stands for electrical systems. While the "E" is specific to the mission of the aircraft, 10 was used simply because it is next in the inventory sequence. The "A" stands for the first variation of the aircraft.
The Electronic Systems Center here is managing the acquisition and development of the E-10A. Hanscom is also the birthplace of three other Air Force aircraft that share the E designation -- the E-3B Sentry airborne warning and control system aircraft, the E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System and the E-4B, which serves as the National Airborne Operations Center for the president and secretary of defense.
"There was talk about creating an 'M' prefix for multisensor," said Col. Joseph Smyth, multisensor command and control aircraft system program director, "but it was decided to go with the 'E' designation instead."
The Air Force Program Integration Division at the Pentagon recently approved the designation.
The E-10 multisensor command and control aircraft will provide ground- and some airborne-moving target indication, as well as key battle management command and control. It is expected to be a central element in the Air Force's Command and Control Constellation.
The C2 Constellation is a concept that envisions a fully connected array of land-, platform- and space-based sensors that use common standards and communication protocols to relay information automatically in machine-to-machine interfaces.
Architectural development, system engineering and integration of the Constellation are also being managed here.
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