Introduction
There have been a number of political developments that impact the future of Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) that have advanced since The (Political) Future of the E-7 Wedgetail was published in July 2025 – a post that I admit was far from prophetic. This post will explore some of these developments, with special focus on the implications of the most recent continuing resolution (CR) and the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) set to become law shortly.
Appropriations and Continuing Resolutions
“No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law,” per Article I Section 9 of the U.S. Constitution. While there are multiple vehicles through which Congress funds various government activities, military spending is appropriated on an annual basis through the Defense Appropriations Act and the Appropriations Act for Military Construction (MILCON), Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies, both of which expire at the end of each fiscal year alongside ten other annual appropriations acts.
Or at least that’s how it is supposed to work. In practice, Congress has passed a Defense Appropriations Act before the start of the fiscal year only once in the past fifteen years. When regular appropriations bills are not passed before the start of a new fiscal year, Congress instead passes continuing resolutions to extend funding at the same levels as the expiring appropriations act to avoid shutting down the Department of Defense or other government agencies covered under any of the twelve annual appropriations bills. These continuing resolutions typically cover a relatively short timeframe, during which Congress endeavors to pass regular appropriations bills to more properly fund the government for the remainder of the fiscal year. Should Congress fail to pass an appropriations measure of some sort – either a regular appropriations act or a continuing resolution – prior to the previous appropriation’s expiration, the affected agencies are forced to “shut down” as they lose the ability to expend or obligate funds.
The (First) Continuing Resolution of FY2026
On November 12, after a 43-day lapse in appropriations, Congress passed a continuing resolution (CR) to continue funding the majority of the federal government, including the Department of Defense, at previously-enacted levels through 30 January 2026. This CR is relatively “clean,” meaning it provided for very few adjustments to the prior-year’s appropriation (the prior year appropriation was itself a year-long CR of FY2024 appropriations). One of these few adjustments, referred to as an “anomaly,” was the addition of $199.7M for continued rapid prototyping efforts for the E-7, under the Air Force Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) line. This anomaly indicates Congress’ desire to see the E-7 program continue, and enables/requires the Department to continue work to keep the program on timeline.
Defense Appropriations for FY2026
While the CR appropriated funds to continue development of the E-7 for the U.S. Air Force for the duration of the CR, continued appropriations will be required to continue the program through the remainder of FY2026. Continued appropriations for the E-7 program appear likely, as both the House and Senate have included significant funding for the program in their Committee Reports to accompany their chambers’ respective Defense Appropriations Acts. The House Report, accompanying the House-passed Defense Appropriations Act, includes a total of $500M for the E-7 program during FY2026. The Senate Report, accompanying the Senate-introduced Defense Appropriations Act, includes a total of $846.6M for the E-7 program – a $647M “plus up” above the amount requested by the Department.
The Senate Report also cuts nearly $1.5M in requested funding for increased E-2D procurement, which the Department had planned to use as a near-term replacement for the E-7 program. The House Report accommodates the majority of the Department’s E-2D request by including just over $1.2M for the procurement of four additional E-2Ds.
When differences exist between a House and Senate bill, these differences are reconciled through conference. When considering appropriations, the conference will come to an agreement on the top-line funding levels set forth in the bills themselves and will produce a Conference Report – a compromise report reconciling the House and Senate Reports – to accompany the final version of the bill that will be sent to both the House and Senate to be passed in identical form. This Conference Report will include final authoritative amounts to be spent for each specified program, including, in this case, RDT&E for the E-7. Given the figures in the House and Senate reports, it is reasonable to expect that the final Conference Report will allocate at least $500M toward the E-7 program over the course of FY2026. If this occurs, the E-7 program will continue as originally planned through the remainder of the fiscal year.
Defense Authorizations for FY2026
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is distinct from the Defense Appropriations Act, and directs the Department and military services to do things such as conduct studies, produce plans, or enact policies; prohibits the Department and military services from doing things such as divesting platforms or enacting policies, and; authorizes – though does not require nor directly enable – the Department or military services to procure specific platforms in specific quantities. Similar to the Appropriations Acts, both the House- and Senate-passed versions of the FY2026 NDAA supported the continuation of the E-7 program, and this support is unsurprisingly reflected in the conferenced bill that is nearly certain to become law.
The conferenced NDAA includes Sec. 163, Prohibition on Availability of Funds for Contract Termination or Production Line Shutdown for E-7A Wedgetail Aircraft, which, as the title implies, prohibits the Department from expending any funds to terminate the rapid prototype contract or shutter the production line for the E-7. The NDAA also authorizes (pending appropriations) $846M for continued development of the E-7. This funding authorization is not “real,” in the sense that the money can not be spent unless provided for in an appropriations act, but it does indicate broad congressional support for the E-7 program.
Executive Considerations
The Department has expressed a clear and consistent desire to cancel the E-7 program in FY2026 and to instead invest in currently fielded AEW&C platforms until space-based capabilities mature to the point that AEW&C is no longer required.
This was first made public in June 2025, when the President’s Budget Request was briefed to Congress. This request included only enough E-7 funding to end the program, and requested nearly $1.5M to procure additional E-2Ds to fill the near-term AEW&C role in lieu of the E-7. One senior military official cited “significant delays with cost increases…and survivability concerns” for the E-7 as the primary rationale behind the decision. Secretary Hegseth expressed similar sentiment during congressional testimony, where he stated that the E-7 is “not survivable in the modern battlefield” and described the program as “sort of late, more expensive, and ‘gold plated.’”
In the time since the above plan was unveiled as a part of the budget rollout, the Administration has continued to advocate for its preferred course of action through Statements of Administration Policy (SAPs) released from the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
SAPs are most effective when they are released in time to impact pending legislation, and as such OMB released SAPs for both the House and Senate variants of the NDAA as they passed through their respective chambers. These SAPs both contained provisions expressing concern over how these bills address AEW&C. These SAPs explain that the Administration “supports cancelling the E-7 due to the platform’s survivability and significant cost,” that it “intends to fund four additional E-2D aircraft…as cost-effective risk mitigations related to its decision to cancel the E-7 program,” and that it “has made significant investments in space-based targeting and beyond line-of-sight communications, which would subsume a large portion of the E-7 mission.” The SAP on the conferenced bill is, in line with pragmatic custom, far less detailed than its predecessors and makes no mention of the E-7.
The Future of the E-7
While the Administration is clearly opposed to continued development of the E-7, Congress appears poised to keep the program on track in the near term. Assuming Congress appropriates additional funds for continued RDT&E of the E-7 through FY2026 (this appears likely), the Department will be required to expend these funds for this purpose. It is, of course, possible that the President will choose to veto the FY2026 Defense Appropriations Act on the basis of the E-7, though history shows that vetoes of military appropriations acts (apart from CRs) are exceedingly rare, having last occurred in 1879.
With the E-7 program highly likely to continue through FY2026, the question becomes whether the Department will maintain its current position as it programs & budgets for FY2027 and beyond and, if so, whether Congress will continue to foist the E-7 upon the Department as an unwanted requirement through annual appropriations.
The Way Ahead
The future of AEW&C appears, for the moment, to hinge upon an annual conflict between two branches of government, though the supportive branch is constitutionally far better equipped to emerge victorious should it remain inclined to continue the fight. Global enthusiasm for the E-7 is waning among current and prospective future customers, and perhaps could wane in the U.S. Congress as well.
With significant acquisition reform on the horizon, there is a possible future in which an “off-the-shelf” non–E-7 solution could be rapidly fielded and procured, and this possibility may be enticing to some in Congress (it is to some at C2_Coord!). Should the Department also be inclined to support such an effort, Congress may be a willing partner in pivoting to an alternate AEW&C platform. Should the Department continue to shy away from supporting any AEW&C platform in favor of future space-based solutions, this path also appears uncertain.
Meanwhile, the C2ABM community has ample opportunity to “love the one they’re with,” as Sec. 149 of the upcoming NDAA prohibits the Department of Defense from reducing the inventory of E-3s below 16 aircraft without a fielded replacement or comprehensive plan to otherwise mitigate the retirement. That the E-3 will remain a comforting presence on Air Force flight lines and, occasionally, in the skies, may be the only thing that is certain in the near future.
Lt Col Douglas “Opie” Foulk, USAF, is a Senior Air Battle Manager, currently on staff as a Legislative Affairs Officer at the United Stated Indo-Pacific Command. He previously served in various positions across multiple E-3G AWACS squadrons.
The views expressed are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the U.S. Air Force, Department of Defense, or U.S. government.
Photo by Thomas Lin on Pexels
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