Pegasus

The best images we’ve seen so far of the German Luftwaffe’s PEGASUS signals intelligence (SIGINT) aircraft reveal key details of the unique airframe adaptations made to the Bombardier Global 6000 bizjet platform it’s based on. The photos were shared with TWZ by @CorreaPhtgphy, who captured them earlier this year, in Abilene, Texas.

The aircraft, the first of three for the Luftwaffe, made its first flight from Bombardier’s facility in Wichita, Kansas, on October 23, 2024. Initial flight testing is underway in Wichita, with the work being conducted by pilots from the Bombardier Flight Test Center (BFTC).

The centerpiece of the PEGASUS (which stands for Persistent German Airborne Surveillance System) is the Kalætron Integral SIGINT suite from the Hensoldt company. The first PEGASUS initially took to the air without this mission suite, integration of which is being led by Lufthansa Technik Defense, together with Hensoldt and Bombardier Defense.

However, the aircraft already has the various green-colored fairings associated with the PEGASUS sensors. On each side of the fuselage is an oval-shaped fairing, while below the fuselage is a larger fairing with two distinct bulges, fore and aft. Additionally, smaller green areas atop the tailfin and below the wings suggest further antennas may be located here, too.

According to Hensoldt, Kalætron Integral will be a “comprehensive strategic asset for wide-area reconnaissance, mastering the challenges posed by today’s electromagnetic spectrum.” It will be able to hoover up electromagnetic intelligence from hostile radar emitters (ELINT) as well as enemy communications (COMINT). Electromagnetic emissions will be collected with “exceptional accuracy [and] high sensitivity” over frequencies ranging from below 30 MHz to 40 GHz.

Aided by the Global 6000’s relatively high-altitude flight profile, the Kalætron Integral sensors will be able to detect emissions at ranges up to 250 miles, the manufacturer says. This provides the aircraft with a significant standoff capability, helping keep the jet and its onboard operators further away from enemy air defense systems. Still, line-of-sight restricts even the best sensors and enemy air defenses are only going to have longer and longer reach as time goes on.

On the jet, the operators’ job is intended to be made easier through the use of machine learning and AI algorithms. These should help filter through intercepted emissions, prioritizing them, and speeding up the decision-making process. The end result will bring together intelligence gathered from a variety of different platforms in a rapidly updated electromagnetic order of battle.

The origins of the PEGASUS program lie in plans to supersede the German Navy’s former Breguet Atlantic SIGINT aircraft with a more modern platform. The last SIGINT-configured Atlantic, an aircraft type that was mainly used to roam around the Baltic Sea, was retired in 2010.

The original plan was to replace the Atlantic SIGINT with an adaptation of the Global Hawk drone, the RQ-4E Euro Hawk. Five of these drones were planned to be fielded, each equipped with an Airbus-developed SIGINT system known as ISIS.

European aviation authorities repeatedly refused to certify the RQ-4E to fly over the continent. This, combined with major cost overruns and long delays, saw the program abandoned in 2013, after one of the drones had been flown. Plans to sell the one-off aircraft to Canada collapsed, and the RQ-4E is now set to become a very costly museum exhibit.

For a brief time, the German Ministry of Defense looked at buying another Global Hawk derivative, the U.S. Navy’s MQ-4C Triton, which was developed from the outset for civil certification.

That plan was also abandoned, and the German Armed Forces now pin their hopes on the PEGASUS, an all-new crewed SIGINT platform.

At one point, the Luftwaffe had expected to get its hands on its first RQ-4E under the Euro Hawk program in 2012.

Finally, in 2021, Hensoldt was awarded the contract to supply its Kalætron Integral system for three PEGASUS jets, with the first of these aircraft now under flight test.

Once flight tests with the SIGINT suite are completed, further integration work will take place in Hamburg, Germany. Here, Lufthansa Technik Defense will also be in charge of certification.

Already, there are signs that Germany might increase its PEGASUS order to help meet a growing demand for airborne SIGINT products.

Speaking to the media last year, Jürgen Halder, vice-president of airborne SIGINT at Hensoldt, said: “If you look at the current geopolitical situation, even though any [one] aircraft can persistently monitor a vast area, there are unfortunately too many hot spots globally. So, we expect an additional rise [in aircraft numbers] to be coming eventually.”

Halder continued: “Discussions are starting in a very early phase, but it’s apparent that three aircraft are not sufficient, especially if you consider that the Euro Hawk program had already included much higher numbers of aircraft.”

For now, the first three German PEGASUS aircraft are due to be delivered between 2026 and 2028, and to become operational in 2027.

Germany can also look forward to expanding its airborne intelligence-gathering capabilities with the arrival of the first P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft. While these eight aircraft will be primarily used for anti-submarine warfare, they can also act in an electronic intelligence collection role, with their standard electronic support measures (ESM) suite able to detect and geolocate enemy air defenses and monitor its overall electronic order of battles. Furthermore, the P-8 lends itself to modifications, such as the host for a secretive radar system, the AN/APS-154 Advanced Airborne Sensor, or AAS, although this has never been exported.

For now, Germany’s PEGASUS further underlines how the Global 6000 series is becoming one of the most popular choices for military special missions adaptations. In September of this year, South Korea confirmed its choice of the Global 6500 as the platform for its new airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft, as you can read about here. Meanwhile, GlobalEye AEW&C aircraft, based on Global 6000 platforms, have been ordered by Sweden and the United Arab Emirates.

The military success of the Global 6000 series reflects the growing importance of business-jet-type aircraft for ISTAR missions. Platforms like these are becoming increasingly cost-effective, thanks in no small part to steady improvements in jet engine technology, and their popularity has been proven out by the U.S. Air Force, which opted for a Global 6000-based solution for its E-11A Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN) program.

The U.S. Army, meanwhile, has ordered a Global 6500-based solution for its ME-11B High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System (HADES), which will be the service’s next-generation intelligence-gathering aircraft. These modified bizjets will have extensive sensor suites that include the Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar System-2B (ASARS-2B) and could have the ability to launch drones.

Nevertheless, with all these crewed, bizjet-based ISTAR platforms, there remain very real reservations about their survivability and even their utility during a conflict, especially during the types of high-end warfare that could be fought in the future against a near-peer adversary. Even when provided with external protection, the survivability of these aircraft in more contested airspace is very questionable. At the same time, while new sensors certainly offer improved capabilities, such aircraft may very well have to get within range of longer-range air defense systems to gather useful intelligence.

Overall, growing tensions in Europe and the Indo-Pacific region, and the increasing likelihood of NATO nations and their allies having to face peer or near-peer adversaries in future contingencies, mean that there is a particular appetite for platforms that can help keep track of hostile electromagnetic orders of battle and enemy communications. With that in mind, and considering the effi the Global 6000 series and similar bizjet-based solutions look set to find other customers in the special missions realm for the foreseeable future.

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The Israeli Ministry of Defense has said it will seek to buy two more Boeing KC-46A Pegasus tankers from the United States, as it invests in its fleet of in-flight refueling tankers, heavily utilized in the recent campaign against Iran, as well as for other long-range combat missions and domestic ones. While Israel has already committed to buying four KC-46s, it currently relies on a dwindling fleet of veteran Boeing 707 tankers. The 12-day war against Iran earlier this year, in particular, led to questions about Israeli Air Force (IAF) aerial refueling capacity, and the U.S. government was forced to deny that it had provided additional tanker support for the operation.

“The fifth and sixth [KC-46] refueling aircraft will strengthen the IAF — the IDF’s long-range strategic arm — enabling it to reach distant theaters with greater force and scope,” said Maj. Gen. Amir Baram, director general of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, earlier this week.

Baram was announcing re-equipment plans that also include additional armored vehicles and first-person-view (FPV) drones. The KC-46 acquisition is set to move forward once approval has been granted by Israel’s Defense Procurement Ministerial Committee. Valued at a reported $500 million, the tanker deal will be funded through U.S. financial aid.

The “new aircraft will be equipped with Israeli systems and adapted to the Israeli Air Force’s operational requirements,” the Israeli Ministry of Defense added.

Ido Nehushtan, president of Boeing Israel, told Breaking Defense that the company “takes pride in its longstanding partnership with Israel, a relationship that dates back to the nation’s establishment. The KC-46A tanker aircraft will provide the world’s most advanced multi-mission aerial refueling capability to the IAF.”

Back in 2020, the U.S. State Department approved the potential sale of eight KC-46As to Israel, with the entire package having an estimated price tag of $2.4 billion.

“The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to U.S. national interests to assist Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability,” the U.S. Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said at the time. “This proposed sale is consistent with those objectives.”

A year later, Israel formally approved plans for its first order of KC-46s. Israel reportedly also inquired about whether it could take delivery of its first pair of KC-46s from a lot the U.S. Air Force had already contracted Boeing to build. This would allow the IAF to get these aircraft earlier than would otherwise be possible.

Finally, in 2022, the U.S. Department of Defense awarded Boeing a $930-million contract for the first four KC-46s for Israel, with deliveries due before the end of 2026.

It’s unclear to what degree Israel’s procurement timeline for the KC-46 has been affected by the type’s well-publicized problems in U.S. service, but the move to increase the purchase signals confidence in the program and will be a boon for Boeing as it seeks further foreign sales for the type.

By the time the first IAF KC-46s arrive, they are expected to be fitted with the next-generation version of the critical Remote Vision System (RVS) that has proven so challenging to perfect. Ironically, the Israeli 707s that the KC-46 will replace have long used a locally developed RVS that has apparently proven very effective, and which you can read more about here and here.

Meanwhile, there’s no doubt that the IAF badly needs a successor for its 707 fleet, these aircraft being known locally as the Re’em (oryx in Hebrew).

Today’s Re’em fleet first entered service in 1979, with then-newer 707-300 airframes replacing previous 707-100s. These aircraft were acquired from commercial airlines before being modified locally for aerial refueling. The conversion was done by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). Additional airframes were acquired and upgraded to tankers as recently as the 2010s, but the most worn-out examples are already being retired.

In addition to aerial refueling, the IAF’s 707s have a critical role as a command-and-control station and communications node. The aircraft carries a satellite communications suite to provide critical, secure beyond-line-of-sight communications with appropriately equipped tactical aircraft like the F-15 and F-16, and command centers far away. This is also highly important for long-range strike operations. The reference to the KC-46 being fitted with “Israeli systems and adapted to the Israeli Air Force’s operational requirements” may well be a reference to similar C2 and communications modifications.

As of today, Israel is understood to have no more than seven 707 tankers in service, with satellite imagery of Nevatim Airbase dating from late last year showing five examples visible there.

This means that the Re’em is more valuable to the IAF than ever, especially for its long-range strike capabilities, a point underscored by recent Israeli operations in the Middle East.

As well as the campaign against Iran’s nuclear program, codenamed Operation Rising Lion, which involved round-trip flights of around 2,000 miles, the IAF has flown other high-profile long-range attacks against targets across the region, since Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack. This has included raids against Houthi targets in Yemen.

The demand for tanker capacity to support these operations, as well as other assignments and routine and training activities, led to speculation that the U.S. Air Force might be assisting Israel in this regard.

In the wake of the 12-day war with Iran, the U.S. Department of Defense issued a flat-out denial that it provided any such support for the IAF during the conflict.

A U.S. Air Force spokesperson stated the following in response to TWZ’s inquiry into the matter:

“The U.S. Air Force routinely conducts training operations alongside allies and partners within the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. The Israeli Air Force routinely participates in these exercises and operations at various levels; however, U.S. aerial refueling platforms do not conduct in-flight refueling operations with the IAF.”

There are still claims that the U.S. did in fact provide some tanking during the 12-Day War. Regardless, provided the USAF’s denial is fully accurate, it makes the IAF’s ability to sustain a high tempo of operations and achieve significant effects over such great distances all the more remarkable.

Meanwhile, it remains undeniable that the U.S. military has an unmatched ability to provide Israel with tanking capacity, if there were a plan to do so. With KC-46 deliveries continuing, and with the Pegasus looking to be on track for further U.S. orders, under what has been termed the ‘bridge tanker’ requirement, the aircraft is increasingly becoming the backbone of the U.S. Air Force’s tanker fleet.

With Israel now moving to grow its KC-46 orders, this should speed the process of retiring the fast-aging 707s and providing much-needed modernization for the Israeli Air Force’s aerial refueling capacity.

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