NATO is reportedly reconsidering its plans to field the Boeing E-7A Wedgetail airborne early warning and control aircraft.

The Brussels-headquartered military alliance has existing plans to acquire 14 E-7As as a successor to the fleet of NATO-owned Boeing E-3 Sentry jets. Fourteen of those aircraft are currently in service, all more than 40-years old, according to fleets data from aviation analytics firm Cirium.

However, that acquisition is apparently up for debate, driven by uncertainty about the USA’s own intentions around the E-7A.

Pentagon leaders appointed by US President Donald Trump have publicly questioned the survivability of the E-7A in modern contested airspace, signaling they would prefer to develop a space-based alternative identifying and targeting airborne threats

Now, NATO procurement officials say their own E-7A programme “as a whole is being assessed”, according to reporting by Brussels-based news outlet Euractiv.

The NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA), which is overseeing the acquisition, tells Euractiv that the alliance headquarters and the member states participating in the E-7A buy will “evaluate the available options”.

NSPA plans to give an update at the end of September regarding the division of costs across the NATO member states participating in the Wedgetail acquisition.

While those aircraft will be owned by NATO, member states will contribute the necessary funds for the purchase, and the personnel needed to operate the jets. Eight countries are signed on to the project, including the USA.

Known as the Initial Alliance Future Surveillance and Control (iAFSC) Support Partnership, that effort is separate from the US Air Force programme to field 26 Wedgetails to replace its own aged E-3s.

The air force has already committed $2.6 billion to Boeing for the delivery of two prototype Wedgetails, with a production decision on a larger E-7 fleet planned for fiscal year 2026.

While the Pentagon has openly suggested cancelling those plans and instead buying more Northrop Grumman E-2Ds, elected lawmakers in Congress indicate they will continue to fiscally support the USAF E-7A programme.

Congress has the final say in all government funding decisions under the American system of government, with lawmakers often overruling generals and appointees at the Pentagon on matters related to aircraft procurement and retirement.

For its part, Boeing has outwardly projected confidence that the USAF’s E-7A programme will move forward.

“I believe E-7 Wedgetail will be in the US Air Force inventory in large numbers,” Steve Parker, the chief executive of Boeing’s defence unit, told FlightGlobal in June at the Paris air show.

It remains unclear how Boeing’s E-7A production line would be impacted by the loss of the type’s largest customer.

For NATO, key issues include any potential changes to the cost of each aircraft and whether or not Washington will uphold its commitment to financially support the NSPA’s Wedgetail acquisition.

Although Boeing has declined to speculate, a significant reduction in total orders would likely place upward pressure on the price-per-tail for the remaining E-7 customers.

Were the US to withdraw its support from the iAFSC partnership, the remaining members might seek an alternative closer to home.

Amid an overall shift in sentiment toward sourcing European defence purchases from within the bloc, Swedish airframer Saab has seen growing interest in its Bombardier Global 6000/6500-based GlobalEye AEW&C platform.

In May, the company said it plans to boost its GlobalEye production capacity to reach four aircraft per year by 2030.

Saab had previously offered the GlobalEye to NATO for the E-3 replacement, ultimately losing out to the E-7A. However, the Swedish firm did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the possibility of NATO re-opening the tender.