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Date: 2025-07-04 Page is: DBtxt003.php txt00028664

Wes O'Donnell: Why Is Everyone Talking About Ukraine’s New Swedish Spy Plane? PLAY YOUTUBE VIDEO Original article: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrXAtrUlni4 Peter Burgess COMMENTARY Peter Burgess
Why Is Everyone Talking About Ukraine’s New Swedish Spy Plane? Wes O'Donnell Jun 6, 2025 74.2K subscribers ... 333,079 views ... 17K likes MICHIGAN Ukraine finally has its own eyes in the sky, and no, it’s not a missile or a stealth jet. It’s a twin-prop regional airliner turned airborne command center: the Saab 340 AEW&C. In this episode, I break down why Sweden’s donation of its ultra-rare Erieye radar aircraft may be one of the most important military systems Ukraine has received to date. As someone who flew on the U.S. E-3 Sentry AWACS in the Air Force, I know firsthand how critical airborne early warning and control really is. The difference? The Saab 340 isn’t trying to compete with the massive American AWACS—it’s doing something smarter: providing real-time radar coverage and battle management right from Ukrainian airspace. No more relying on NATO intel from the sidelines. This is the next evolution in Ukraine’s air power. From vectoring F-16s onto Russian fighters without turning on their own radars, to catching cruise missiles the second they’re launched from deep inside Russia, this little “canoe-on-top” aircraft is now the most dangerous bird in Ukraine’s skies. And it just might signal Ukraine’s transition from reactive defense to proactive air dominance. In this video, I’ll walk you through: • What the Saab 340 AEW&C is and how it works • The Erieye radar’s strengths—and its limitations • How this system will enable ambushes, air superiority, and smarter SAM deployment • Why Sweden giving away one of only two airframes is such a massive gesture • How this could reshape NATO-style coordination for Ukraine’s growing Air Force Subscribe if you’re into battlefield innovation, Western-donated weapon systems, or just enjoy watching Russia’s bad day get worse. We’re closing in on 100,000 subscribers, and your support powers this channel’s mission to cut through the noise with sarcasm, hard truth, and sharp analysis. 🛩 Glory to Ukraine. Glory to the Heroes. Crimea is Ukraine. Video Sources: https://pastebin.com/tyhJveHv #Ukraine #Sweden #UkraineWar #Saab340 #News #AWACS #AirForce #MilitaryTechnology #Sweden #Erieye #UkraineDefense #F16 #NATOSupport #RussiaUkraineWar #BattlefieldTech #VeteranYouTuber #AirborneRadar #MilitaryAnalysis #AvGeek #DefenseNews #CrisisCoverage #TacticalAdvantage #GloryToUkraine How this content was made Auto-dubbed Audio tracks for some languages were automatically generated. Learn more Transcript 0:00 ukraine just got eyes in the sky sweden's Saab 340 flying radar has arrived and while it might not look like 0:07 much next to a US Awax this bird might 0:11 be one of the most important systems 0:13 Ukraine's air force has ever received 0:16 not a missile not a tank a flying 0:19 command center and it's about to change 0:21 everything hi friends Wes here and I'm a 0:24 badass mother who don't take no offbody 0:29 i'm also an Army infantry vet Air Force 0:32 Awak surveillance radar guy journalist 0:34 law nerd and probably one of the few 0:36 people on YouTube who can tell you what 0:38 a rotodome sounds like from inside the 0:41 aircraft spoiler it's a lot like a dying 0:44 whale screaming at 30,000 ft i used to 0:46 fly on the E3 Century America's big 0:49 flying radar plane it's massive it's 0:52 loud and it builds a radar picture so 0:55 wide we could track threats across 0:57 entire continents but it's also old big 1:01 and slow oh and it's hard to hide which 1:05 is exactly why Ukraine doesn't need an 1:07 E3 they need this the Saab 340 1:12 AEWNC smaller faster easier to hide and 1:16 packed with modern sensors let's break 1:18 it down we're deep into year four of 1:20 Russia's full-scale invasion every day 1:23 Ukraine is defending against missile 1:25 barges drone swarms and long range 1:28 bomber strikes and until now they've 1:30 been doing it without their own airborne 1:32 early warning aircraft no Awax no 1:35 dedicated radar eyes in the sky most of 1:38 Ukraine's air picture has been piped in 1:40 through NATO british 1:43 RC135s US Global Hawks German tornadoes 1:46 all watching from outside Ukrainian 1:48 airspace that introduces a delay a gap 1:53 and in war a delay means dead civilians 1:55 and destroyed infrastructure now with 1:58 the Saab 340 Ukraine finally has its own 2:01 early warning in country in real time 2:05 operated by Ukrainians not 2:07 intermediaries let's unpack what this 2:09 flying radar really is and why it's the 2:12 perfect fit for Ukraine's air defense 2:14 game right now the Saab 340 AEWNC known 2:17 in Swedish service as the 2:19 ACS890 starts with a humble airframe a 2:22 twin engine regional turborop airliner 2:25 in civilian life this aircraft usually 2:27 shuttles 30 business travelers from 2:30 Stockholm to Goththingberg while they 2:32 complain about the coffee but Sweden had 2:35 other plans they gutted the interior 2:37 hardened the systems added military 2:39 comms gear and bolted an eerie PS890 2:42 radar to the roof a long fixed ISA 2:47 active electronically scanned array beam 2:49 that looks like someone stuck a canoe on 2:52 the top of the plane this isn't just 2:54 cosmetic that radar can track targets at 2:57 up to 400 km unclassified depending on 3:00 altitude and line of sight and unlike 3:03 older mechanically scanned radars ERI 3:06 uses electronic beam steering that means 3:08 faster scanning better tracking and the 3:11 ability to focus on multiple threat 3:13 sectors at once now it's not perfect the 3:17 fixed beam gives you 120° of coverage 3:20 per side great for a wide battlefield 3:23 sweep but it does create blind spots to 3:26 the front and the rear that's a major 3:28 trade-off compared to the E3's 360° 3:32 spinning dome so no this isn't a full 3:35 Awax replacement it's more of a 3:37 battlefield oriented radar picture than 3:39 a strategic theater overview but for 3:43 Ukraine's war that trade-off makes sense 3:46 because here's the reality they're not 3:48 looking to manage an air campaign over 3:50 half of Europe they're trying to detect 3:53 cruise missiles out of Kursk spot drone 3:55 swarms out of Belgar and Vector F-16s 3:59 onto enemy aircraft sneaking over 4:02 Zaparisia the Saab gives them the kind 4:05 of tactical situational awareness 4:07 they've never had before and that's just 4:09 the radar the SA 340 is also loaded with 4:12 battle management gear encrypted data 4:15 links and multiband radios in NATO 4:18 parliament this means the aircraft can 4:20 not only see the threat it can also 4:22 command control and communicate the 4:25 threat in real time with fighters air 4:28 defense crews and other airborne 4:29 platforms this turns the Saab into a 4:32 true AEWC platform airborne early 4:36 warning and control not just an airborne 4:39 radar truck so let's talk use cases 4:41 imagine a Russian bomber squadron takes 4:43 off from Engle's air base or what few 4:46 bombers Russia has left after Operation 4:49 Spider's Web the Saab 340 detects it 4:52 minutes earlier than any ground radar 4:54 would that gives Ukraine time to 4:57 reposition mobile SAMs alert civilians 5:00 scramble fighters and retask 5:02 interceptors or take an air-to-air 5:04 engagement a Ukrainian F-16 flying near 5:07 HKE can stay radio silent its radar off 5:11 avoiding detection meanwhile the SA340 5:14 is orbiting 150 miles behind feeding it 5:17 real-time threat data the fighter locks 5:20 an AM RAM missile on a Russian 5:22 SU35 fires and turns away without ever 5:26 switching on its own radar again it's 5:28 all about speed and visibility the Saab 5:31 also makes joint operations possible in 5:33 a way Ukraine couldn't do before when 5:36 your radar picture is stitched together 5:38 in real time and shared across air land 5:40 and sea assets you can start building 5:43 what's called a common operating picture 5:45 a unified view of the battle space that 5:48 lets everyone fight smarter not harder 5:52 and it's not just for defense with this 5:54 system in the air Ukraine can plan 5:56 coordinated deep strike missions think 5:58 F-16s going after a Russian air base or 6:01 S400 battery with realtime Saab support 6:04 the Erie radar tracks enemy aircraft 6:07 trying to intercept while the Saab crew 6:10 guides strike packages around known 6:12 threats and even retargets missiles 6:15 mid-flight this is NATO style air 6:17 coordination in a very unnot the bottom 6:21 line the SA 340 isn't just a radar on 6:24 wings it's an airborne quarterback a 6:27 mission planner and a threat spotter all rolled into one and while it lacks the flashy silhouette of an E3 or a wedge tail criy it's exactly what Ukraine needs a nimble survivable and modern airborne battle manager that can keep up with this fastmoving war finally there's a doctrine shift sweden didn't just give Ukraine a new toy they handed over a piece of NATO air power infrastructure this is a capability not just a platform and it signals trust sweden only has two 7:01 of these aircraft they gave one to Ukraine and kept one for training the infrastructure defense is also huge with this system in the air Ukraine can protect logistics hubs rail lines command centers and power plants the radar builds a real-time picture of the entire threat envelope letting operators brace for the next caliber or shahed strike let's not sugarcoat it the Saab 340 is slow it's not maneuverable it doesn't have stealth and it can't outrun an R37M fired from a Russian SU35 if it gets caught outside friendly air defense umbrellas it's toast so Ukraine has to be smart expect these aircraft to fly deep in the rear always behind layers of Patriots NASAs and Irish TS possibly escorted by fighters possibly using electronic warfare to mass their signals another downside these radars can be jammed russia has powerful EW capabilities and if they know where the 8:01 Saab is they'll try to blind it but again the value proposition is clear even if it only flies a few hours a day it gives Ukraine command and control that it has never had before back when I was flying in the E3 we used to talk about building a God's eye view of the battlefield total dominance every radar contact mapped every missile tracked ukraine isn't there yet but this is step one it also hints at a deeper shift we're watching Ukraine's air force transition from a reactive force to a proactive one from intercepting drones over cities to planning coordinated air campaigns with F-16s AM RAMs and real-time data feeds if they can integrate this platform correctly it won't just help Ukraine win the air war it'll reshape how regional air forces operate for decades to come so what does it all mean it means Ukraine is building something permanent not just borrowing 9:00 NATO gear not just surviving the next missile wave it's assembling a real air force one that flies its own fighters sees its own airspace and calls its own shots and Sweden by handing over one of its only two flying radars it's not just helping Ukraine it's showing the rest of NATO what commitment really looks like keep an eye on the skies because Ukraine just got a new pair that's it for today friends we're closing in on 100,000 subscribers so if you dig military technology with a healthy dose of sarcasm and veteran humor this is where you're meant to be subscribing is the best way to support this channel and as always glory to Ukraine glory to the heroes crimea is Ukraine [Music]

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