NATO to select Canadian advanced surveillance system, marking shift from Boeing aircrafts: reports

The SAAB GlobalEye is seen during the Warsaw Security Forum. (Photo by Marek Antoni Iwanczuk/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

OTTAWA — Canada’s defence sector could soon be getting a major boost with European media suggesting NATO is considering a joint Saab-Bombardier advanced surveillance system in a major state-of-the-art defence purchase.

According to French and Germany media outlets La Lettre and Table Briefings, NATO has selected the GlobalEye advanced surveillance system to replace its aging fleet of Boeing E-3A Sentry airborne warning and control system (AWACS).

While NATO did not confirm the move to CTV News, a NATO official did not deny that the Bombardier-Saab system is being considered.

“Airborne early warning and control is a key capability for the alliance,” the NATO official who asked to remain anonymous told CTV News. “The nations participating in the initiative to replace our existing AWACS fleet continue their work on this with the support of the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA).”

Saab’s GlobalEye mounts a state-of-the-art surveillance system on a Bombardier business jet. The Montreal based company says the jet is designed for a smooth ride that can help minimize crew fatigue, and extend the life of mission equipment. Together, the GlobalEye system can provide long range detection of threats in the air, at sea, on the ground and fly for more than 11 hours.

The European reporting comes as NATO’s fleet of 14 Boeing E-3A Sentries, near their retirement date soon after 2035. The alliance’s current AWACS, based on a modified Boeing 707s went into service in the 1980s.

NATO had initially selected the Boeing E-7A Wedgetail to replace the aging E-3A Sentry, but the alliance was forced to go back to the drawing board in 2025, citing after the U.S. Air Force dropped the E-7 Wedgetail from its spending plans, opting to go with a new space-based surveillance system instead.

If the GlobalEye aircraft is selected, it would mark the first time since 1982 that a non-Boeing aircraft would serve in this kind of capacity. Asked whether a decision had been made, Saab said it is aware of the reporting.

“It is up to NATO to comment on where they are in their procurement process,” said the head of Saab’s Press Centre Mattias Rådström. “I can confirm that we have provided information to them but we have not signed a contract or received an order from NATO for GlobalEye.”

The UAE, Sweden and France have all purchased Saab’s GlobalEye system.

CTV News reached out to Bombardier for a statement last week but never received a response.

The Department of National Defence also never responded to a request for comment.