On June 18, 2025, the Swedish Saab AB group signed a declaration of intent with the General Directorate of Armaments (Direction générale de l'armement - DGA) of the French Ministry of the Armed Forces regarding the acquisition by France of two Saab GlobalEye long-range radar detection and control aircraft, with an option for two more aircraft. The DGA said the contract is expected to be awarded in the coming months.
Saab GlobalEye AWACS and control aircraft (fifth aircraft built for the UAE Air Force, unpainted, temporary Swedish registration number SE-RMV) during demonstration tests in France, April 2024 (c) Denis Aguilar / @TBourdil
The GlobalEye AWACS and control aircraft are based on a large Bombardier Global 6000/6500 administrative aircraft and are equipped with the Saab Erieye ER radar system, which is a new generation of the well-known Saab Erieye radar system, with a new more powerful Erieye ER radar (Extended Range) with AFAR with gallium nitride antenna elements. GlobalEye aircraft are also equipped with an additional Leonardo Seaspray 7500E marine target detection radar with AFAR in the ventral fairing, the Star SAFIRE 380-HD electro-optical round-the-clock system, the HES-21 radio and electronic intelligence complex, the automatic vessel identification system (AIS), and the onboard defense system. Thus, the GlobalEye aircraft is capable of conducting comprehensive reconnaissance and illumination of the situation, both aerial, surface and ground. According to Saab, the duration of GlobalEye's continuous patrol reaches 13 hours.
In the French Air Force, GlobalEye aircraft are to replace four Boeing E-3F SDCA AWACS and control aircraft. Previously, the French Air Force planned to keep the E-3F aircraft in service until 2035, but recently there have been reports of the possibility of an accelerated replacement for technical and financial reasons.
The French company Dassaul Aviation proposed to the French Aerospace Forces a project to install the Saab Erieye ER radar system on a large business jet of its own production, the Dassaul Falcon 10X, and the Airbus group proposed the creation of an aircraft with the same radar system based on the A330 aircraft. However, in the end, the DGA preferred an already proven solution. In April 2024, the GlobalEye aircraft (the last, fifth aircraft of this type, built for the UAE Air Force) passed demonstration tests in France.
France will thus become the third customer of the GlobalEye aircraft after the United Arab Emirates and Sweden. The UAE was the starting customer of the Saab GlobalEye AWACS and control system, which in November 2015 signed the first contract worth $ 1.27 billion with Saab for the supply of two GlobalEye aircraft, and in 2017 signed an additional contract for the supply of a third complex. All three aircraft were delivered to the UAE Air Force in 2020-2021. On December 30, 2020, Saab signed a contract with the UAE for the supply of two more GlobalEye aircraft worth $1.018 billion, which were delivered in 2024.
On June 30, 2022, the Swedish defense procurement agency Försvarets Materielverk (FMV) signed a contract with the Saab group worth 7.3 billion Swedish kronor (716 million dollars) for the purchase of two GlobalEye aircraft for the Swedish Air Force, with an option for two more aircraft. In June 2024, one of the optional aircraft was transferred to a fixed contract. The first two aircraft are due to be delivered in 2027.
