English translation

The FOB Trapani

“The FOB (Forward Operating Base) mission is to provide Operational, Technical and Logistic support to the AWACS fleet and E 3A Component crews, deployed from the home base of Geilenkirchen” Lt. Col. Massimo Simotti, FOB Trapani Commander, at the Component since 2008, with 1500 flight hours on E 3, most of them in real world ops, and a solid Italian Air Force Air Defence background, explains us: “Our competence, is providing support to those missions flying over the Mediterranean Sea; nowadays due to the increased operational capacity related to the new systems and the AAR (Air to air refuelling), our coverage could be extended to whole Europe, Middle East and North Africa.”
During almost 30 years of activity, the FOB has provided support to numerous air operations, such as Anchor Guard, former Yugoslavia crisis, and, in particular, in the period March 2011 – October 2011 the E 3A Component participated in support of the Libyan crises with the Operation Unified Protector (OUP) accordingly the UN resolution 1970 and 1973 flying 309 missions and 2400 hours from Trapani.
In the period January 2011 – November 2014 the E 3A Component participated to the Afghan Operations with the Operation Afghan Assist (OAA) in support of the ISAF Command. Although the final E 3A returned on the 25th of September, additional two months have been necessary to redeploy all the equipment back to Germany. “The OAA lasted three years and 301 days with NATO AWACS, based at Mazar-i Sharif, Afghanistan”, Lt. Col. Simotti explains us, “controlling over 25.650 aircraft during more than 1.250 missions and 14.000 flying hours, working together USAF E 3C aircraft. Besides standard air traffic control and air space deconfliction, the aircraft played an important role supporting land communication lines, in a territory with a particular orography. OAA was a challenging and very demanding operation with a consequent fast crews rotation. During that timeframe the FOB Trapani in conjunction with the other FOBs provided support to several Tail Swap flew by/to Afghan theatre.”
Besides the normal training and operational activity of the E 3A Component, the FOB has provided support to several “high visibility events” related to the European political and military environment and, in particular, Operation Active Endeavour, NATO’s maritime counter-terrorism operation supporting maritime interdiction operations in anti-smuggling and anti-piracy activities in the Mediterranean sea. In the last period, the E 3A Component and, of course, the FOB Trapani is flying missions in support of Ukrainian reassurance providing surveillance over Romania and Poland 24/7, sharing shifts with British E-3D and French E-3F too. The first operational mission was flown 14th march 2014.
In all thirty years, the FOB has accomplished 6.230 missions flying more than 45.000 hours.
“Regarding maintenance”, Lt. Col. Simotti tells us, “in Trapani, our specialists are fully qualified to operate on the E 3A, as in Geilenkirchen, providing first and second level of maintenance repair. Of course, major works on the jet have to be done at the MOB,
If decided by Higher NATO Authorities, the FOB can support non NATO AWACS providing only operational and cross servicing.”
In the future, the FOB Trapani will support all the E 3A Component activities adapting its structure to the new challenges as requested by the Higher NATO Authorities.

The NAEW&CF
The NAEW&CF (NATO Airborne Early Warning Control Force) was established in January 1980, with its Headquarters located at Supreme Headquarters Allied Force Europe (SHAPE) in Casteau, Mons, Belgium, and is commanded by a US Air Force or German Air Force Major General on a rotational basis. At this time German Air Force Major Gen. Jochen Both is the commander. The Deputy Force Commander is always a RAF Air Commodore.
The NAEW&C Force consists of two operational elements called Components: the multi-national E 3A Component at Geilenkirchen, Germany operating 17 Boeing NATO E 3A AWACS (Airborne Warning And Control System) aircraft and the RAF E 3D Component at Waddington in the UK with 6 Boeing E 3D aircraft manned and operated by RAF personnel exclusively. The E 3D Component declared its Initial Operational Capability (IOC) on July 1992, paving the way for putting the NAEW&C mixed Force concept into reality.
Seventeen Nations (Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom and the United States) participate in the NAEW&CF program, with 15 of them providing personnel to the NATO E 3A Component for its 30 aircrews (the UK flies its own E 3 and Luxemburg doesn’t provide personnel).
The E 3A have been operating from the Main Operating Base (MOB) at Geilenkirchen since February 1982. There are three additional Forward Operating Bases (FOB) in Trapani (Italy), Aktion (Greece), Konya (Turkey) and a Forward Operating Location (FOL) in Oerland (Norway). FOBs/L have approximately 20 military and civilian personnel, all from the respective host Nations, at each site.
The Component was officially activated on 28th June 1982 and reached Full Operational Capability by the end of 1988. It consists of five main functional areas (Headquarters, Operation Wing, Logistics Wing, Training Wing and Information Technology Wing) as well as other normal staff functions, for a total of 2900 multinational military and civilian personnel. Each of these major units is commanded by a Colonel from a specific NATO nation. Today both Operation Wing, the heart of the Component and Training Wings, fundamental for all flight and mission crews, have Italian Air Force lead.
NATO’s three Trainer Cargo Aircraft (TCA), modified Boeing 707 were used from 1985 to 2011 for flight crew training and for cargo/passenger transportation. A commercial airline has been contracted to provide cargo and passenger services, starting Jan. 2012.

The E 3A AWACS

The Boeing NATO E 3A AWACS is powered by 4 Pratt & Whitney TF33 100A turbofan engines, each capable of 20.500 lbs / 9.523 kg of trust. With a Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW) of 325.000 lbs / 147.429 kg, the aircraft can reach an operational altitude above 30.000 ft / 9.150 m, embarking 148.000 lb / 70.371 kg of fuel for an endurance of more than 10 hours, extendible with air-to-air refuelling, routinely performed for long missions like the actual ones for the Ukrainian Crisis.
The 1,5 tons Westinghouse AN/APY-2 RADAR, housed inside the 30 ft / 9,1 m of diameter and 6 ft / 1,8 m of thickness rotodome, which rotate once every 10 seconds, can cover a 312.000 km2 air space. Three E 3A overlapping orbits can provide complete coverage of Central Europe. An E 3A can detect low flying targets within 400 km or 215 nm and medium altitude targets within 520 km or 280 nm. The 360° scan can be divided in 32 separate subsectors each working with a different mode: Pulse Doppler Non-Elevation Scan (PDNES) for surveillance of airborne targets; Pulse Doppler Elevation Scan (PDES) to determine the target elevation; Beyond The Horizon (BTH) pulse radar mode; receive only mode for passive operation; maritime mode which uses very short pulse width for the detection of surface ships; and standby mode. Inside the rotodome there is room for the Identification Friend or Foe (IFF), the AN/APX-103 interrogator, supplied by the Telephonics Corporation, which provides both civil and military IFF operation and instantaneously provides a data set on all targets within the radar range. The data includes IFF status, range, azimuth and elevation position and code identification.
Boeing, with the electronic sensors and systems division of Northrop Grumman as subcontractor, carried out an E 3 AWACS Radar System Improvement Programme (RSIP), completed in 2000, which upgrades radar capability against threats from small radar cross section targets, cruise missiles and electronic countermeasures, through the installation of a new surveillance radar computer (SRC).
The aircraft is equipped with 14 command and control consoles fitted with high-resolution colour displays supplied by Hazeltine, each exactly the same and assuming the desired layout.
The E 3A is fitted with the AN/AYR-1 passive sensor system, which can locate fighter radars 550 km away. This takes the form of a 3,96 m canoe-shaped bulge on each side of the aircraft's forward fuselage, supplemented by pairs of smaller bulges on the nose and tail.
The full communication suite includes wide spectrum VHF radios and satellite communication UHF radios.
The remarkable stream of information produced by E 3A’s sensors must be exchanged and shared with other aircraft, ships, ground stations in the best way, so the aircraft is equipped with some link systems. We have Link 11, mainly used as Maritime Data Link and Joint Tactical Information Distribution System (JTIDS) or TADIL-J (TActical Digital Information Link) commonly referred as Link 16 which can display information which includes an integrated air picture with both friendly and hostile aircraft locations, general situational awareness data, and amplifying data on air and ground targets, including air defence threats.
The layout of the equipment in the fuselage is arranged in bays with areas allocated for communications, signal and data processing, command and control consoles, navigation and target identification systems.
During the whole operational life, the E 3A has received several updates regarding electronic and avionics systems as well as an upgrade of the Missions Consoles and navigations systems. Right now, a new program is in progress to renew the Jet’s flight deck with a modern glass cockpit.

Magic Flight
“The number of Pilots qualified on the E 3A is not fixed, but it is approx. 50-60 Combat Ready ones.” Maj. Francesco “Checco” Miranda, ITAF AWACS Instructor Pilot with more than 1.000 flight hours on E-3A and over 1000 on fighter aircraft (F 104, F 16 instructor pilot) explains us, “Every year, pilots newly arrived at NATO Air Base Geilenkirchen receive conversion training so that they are qualified to fly the E 3A AWACS aircraft. In addition, qualified pilots have to maintain their professional skills by accomplishing training flights. The most important aspects of pilot training include air refuelling, abnormal procedures, emergency handling, tactical considerations, take-off and landing.
In order to be an E 3A pilot, candidates need to have a previous experience on wide body aircraft and/or tactical assets with a minimum of 1.000 hours of flight time.”
The course is designed using modern training methodologies designed to integrate theory with practical application in order to optimize learning. Students will achieve the qualification through a phased approach.
“It's an early sixties concept plane”, Maj. Miranda continues, “but the flight controls response is relatively rapid for an heavy aircraft at all altitude. The Aircraft Commander (AC) is the pilot in command and is responsible for the safety of the aircraft and its occupants.
Both pilots are fully qualified to operate the aircraft. Pilots ensure 'hands on' time and it’s shared evenly. The First Pilot (FP) is also responsible for radio communication and the monitoring of navigation radio aids when not in control of the aircraft.”
To complete the Flight Crew of the aircraft, we have the Navigator (NAV), responsible for establishing and flying the best route to accomplish the task under AC supervision and management and the FE Flight Engineer (FE) responsible for managing all aircraft systems.
“The Tactical Director (TD) is responsible to the appropriate commander for the safe, efficient and successful conduct of the E 3As mission.” Lt. Col. Fabrizio “Eagle 02” Zanetti ITAF TD Instructor with about 1.000 flight hours on E-3A and many ops since 2010 explains us. “The TD is also responsible for the leadership, management, supervision, and training of the crew with regards to mission accomplishment. In particular he/she supervises and manages mission planning activities, usually performed the day prior the mission, required to prepare the entire crew for the mission execution, ensuring the completion of the tactical aspects of the assigned mission.
Usually there is no standard mission; each mission is designed for a special and unique task. For this reason the most important part of TD job is to understand the task and through the coordination with both internal and external agencies manage and supervise the activities of assigned crew so to get ready to achieve a successful mission accomplishment”.
Execution part of the mission is then a direct consequence of mission planning phase.
Of course some time, external factor like adverse weather condition, task changes or technical issues can force a deviation of the mission from the planned sequence. In this case it is also TD responsibility to manage those kinds of circumstances coordinating and implementing suitable modification to the mission profile in the intent of accomplishing assigned task.
The last important phase is the mission debriefing and mission reporting. This phase is critical in order to collect and pass all required information to other crews which will be called to fly future mission.
Main challenges for TDs are usually coming from unforeseen deviation during task execution. When this happens the TD in coordination with his crew needs to make decision in very compressed time frame. In this case is vital to have a very good knowledge of all mission aspects and even more to have a very good CRM (Crew Resource Management) with all crew members. “The TD is a kind of orchestra director”, Lt. Col. Zanetti says, “he can perform only if he is supported by a good orchestra element. On the other hand orchestra element can perform only if they know what to play and when.”
Starting from the front of the jet going toward the back, the composition of a standard Mission Crew is this:
ST System Technician – is responsible for managing all mission compartment computer system and to fix minor technical faults;
CT Communication Technician – is responsible for managing all communication equipment making them available to the crew;
SO Surveillance Operator – are responsible to the SC for different subtask necessary to build up and disseminate the RASP; 3 on board;
FA Fighter Allocator – is responsible to the TD for the management of all tactical asset under Magic control;
WC Weapons Controller – are responsible to the FA for the management of portion of tactical asset under Magic control; 2 on board;
TD Tactical Director – we already mention his duty;
SC Surveillance Controller – is responsible to the TD for building up and exchanging the RASP (Recognized Air Surface Picture) by the usage and optimization of all available sensors (RADAR, IFF) and Data Links;
PC Passive Controller – is responsible to the TD for the management of the ESM (Electronic Support Measure) system in order to complete the RASP with Electronic footprint information;
RT RADAR Technician – is responsible to the TD to manage sensors and to fix RADAR malfunctions during the flight.
“As the FA my primary responsibility is to manage the weapons team consisting of one to five Weapons controllers (WC).” Capt Anthony Mafnas USAF Fighter Allocator and Evaluator Weapons Controller with over 1000 hours on E 3A, deployed in support of Operation Afghan Assist, Active Endeavour, and recently in support of the Ukrainian crisis response force, explains us.
“Not only I supervise the WCs on board but I do the off-jet coordination with other control agencies like other AWACS or CRCs (ground radar control stations). The FA also liaises with other section heads like the Surveillance and Passive controllers to ensure that the best system configuration is being applied to accomplish the mission. The FA is the primary backup to the Tactical Director and if they are either unavailable or incapacitated the FA will stand in their place.
Typically the day prior to a flight we and the crew will plan the mission. Mission planning consists of confirming our fighter activity that we are to support. We coordinate with the pilots to ensure we provide the best service possible by negotiating contracts on how they want us to perform. On the day of the flight, I start by checking the aircraft forms to ensure there are no mechanical or system issues with the jet we are flying, an example is to make sure all of my radios are in proper working condition. Once airborne I will contact the weapons manager of the day to gather any updates to the weapons activity and set up for the mission of controlling the fighter jets. During the weapons activity when the WCs are controlling the “fight”, I ensure adherence to safety procedures and coordinate safe handover of the aircraft with the Air Traffic Control agencies (ATC).
As the FA I must be aware of all aspects of the mission and ensure that the WCs have the information and tools they need to do their job. If they have any questions or concerns my job is to answer these. I also supervise the WC’s performance and give feedback on how to improve in the future (if necessary).
The main challenge during an operational mission is not knowing what to expect.” Capt Anthony Mafnas tells us, “You can plan only a finite amount of scenarios and the “bad guys” don’t always do what you want them to do. With that, we must be very flexible and ready for anything at a moment's notice because we never know what can or will happen.”
As a Surveillance Controller I am responsible for making a correct picture of all the traffic we have in the air.” Ida Bjørklund Norwegian Air Force Combat Ready Surveillance Controller. About 250 hours, she is still pretty new in the component. Supported both Afghan Assist in Afghanistan, and Ukraine Crisis as we fly nowadays. “I use our radar on board to detect all flying activity and evaluates it to give it the correct identification.
I start out with checking our system and make sure our radar is working fine. After that you need to start evaluate all the information you get from the radar into a correct air picture with correct ID. During the whole mission I am constantly checking and working with the system so that we at all time have a correct recognized air picture. During weapons activity I support them with radar picture and different identifications. We can also give a recognized sea picture if we are flying over water.
The three SO`s on board are under my command, and helps me out to complete all the tasks on the Surveillance side. Standard setup is one SO contacting the ground agencies, and do all the coordination with them, the other two are helping me out with my tasks as well as all upcoming events that must occur. Usually we are all four pretty busy!
The PC helps me out with ID for different aircraft by giving me information on specific aircraft type. He uses our passive system on board to select electromagnetic information about both airborne and ground installation. This gives us a good indication about activity and also threats that we can expect.
Our system and sensors not working properly is of course one of our main challenge. Without that I am not able to do my job. Other than that, a lot of traffic in the air makes my job to identify everything very busy.”