A growing chorus of MPs has voiced serious concerns about the RAF’s delayed E-7 Wedgetail programme, warning it leaves the UK dangerously exposed in air surveillance capabilities.
In a recent Westminster Hall debate, John Cooper, Conservative MP for Dumfries and Galloway, described the gap left by the retirement of the RAF’s E-3D Sentry aircraft as creating a “credibility gap” in British air power.
“The RAF has a problem: it cannot offer a complete package,” Cooper told MPs. “We could be relying on NATO allies for extra cover.” While one Wedgetail is expected to appear at this week’s Royal International Air Tattoo, none of the three aircraft ordered by the UK have yet been fully certified for military operations.
Labour’s Tan Dhesi, a Defence Select Committee member, slammed the programme’s progress as “wholly inadequate.” He highlighted a controversial 40 per cent cut to the original five-aircraft fleet, made in pursuit of just a 12 per cent cost saving. “Somebody needs to get a grip on this programme,” Dhesi urged, calling for urgent steps to close the UK’s early warning capability gap.
The E-7 Wedgetail, based on Boeing’s 737 airframe and equipped with an advanced Multi-role Electronically Scanned Array (MESA) radar, is already operational with the Royal Australian Air Force. But the UK’s own programme, first announced in 2019, is now at least two years behind schedule. Cooper emphasised the platform’s critical role, providing “real-time 360-degree situational awareness of the battlespace,” warning that without it, the UK is “relying on the mark one eyeball.”
Conservative MP Mark Francois welcomed the recent appointment of Air Marshal Harv Smyth as Chief of the Air Staff, praising Smyth as “what the Americans would call a warfighter.” He said Smyth and Sir Rich Knighton “will provide a powerful team in the defence of the United Kingdom.”
Labour MP Dr Zubir Ahmed drew attention to the programme’s economic importance, noting the contribution of Scottish firm Thales in Glasgow, which produces the aircraft’s threat warning system. “Will the Member celebrate the role of Scottish firms in defending our realm?” Ahmed asked.
Cooper acknowledged the industrial benefits but launched a sharp attack on the Scottish Government for refusing to fund a new Rolls-Royce welding centre of excellence in Clydebank, while praising the UK Government’s full backing. He labelled the SNP’s approach to defence as “fifth-columnist” and “quite remarkable.”
Adding to the concerns, Cooper quoted US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who reportedly described the Wedgetail as “not survivable in the modern battlefield.” With Washington considering alternatives such as legacy E-2D Hawkeye aircraft and future satellite networks, doubts persist over the platform’s long-term viability.