The CAEW-type aircraft might be pitched to Taiwan to replace its five E-2K Hawkeyes, after it could not acquire the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye.
L3Harris appears to be pitching its AEW&C (Airborne Early Warning and Control) aircraft concept at the TADTE 2025 exhibition in Taiwan, images from Sep. 20, 2025, showed. Based on the proven Bombardier Global 6500 carrier aircraft, the CAEW (Conformal Airborne Early Warning)-type aircraft would see L3Harris integrating conformal radar arrays on the sides of the fuselage, rather than systems mounted on the top fuselage.
The CAEW sensors and radar are developed by IAI (Israeli Aerospace Industries)/ELTA. L3Harris and IAI/ELTA have also partnered for the Italian Air Force’s (Aeronautica Militare) E-550A CAEW aircraft, based on the Gulfstream G-550 business jet.
The system is being pitched for the embattled and outnumbered country as it faces daily provocative incursions of PLA Air Force aircraft around its Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). Currently operating older E-2K Hawkeyes, the RoCAF (Republic of China Air Force) has long sought to enhance its airborne radar fleet, but has been constrained by finance and geopolitical reasons.
外商L3 Harris和Shield AI廠商，各自推出產品模型
包括「蝮蛇之盾」(Viper Shield)電戰系統和V BAT 無人機#TADTE2025 pic.twitter.com/BDY6xUxj7X
— 新‧二七部隊 軍事雜談 (New 27 Brigade)🇹🇼🇺🇦🇮🇱 (@new27brigade) September 19, 2025
New aircraft concept
The user ‘笑脸男人’ shared the images of the model display on X, while also retweeting images from a 2024 exhibition in South Korea, pointing out L3Harris had pitched the same platform there with the name Phoenix. “As an option, L3Harris is marketing the Global 6500, initially intended for the South Korean AEW&C competition, to Taiwan,” the post said.
The Republic of Korea Air Force (RoKAF) kicked off an AEW&C II procurement in 2020, after repeated issues with its four Boeing 737 airborne radars, designated the Peace Eye project. The failure to meet a targeted availability rate of 75%, as per The War Zone, was one major issue. The aircraft is identified as the E-7A Wedgetail in the U.S. Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force and Royal Air Force service.
During the exhibition in South Korea, L3Harris also displayed illustrations on a standee of three other special mission aircraft based on the Global 6500. These were the Phoenix AEW&C aircraft, the CROW Electronic Warfare aircraft and the Griffon ISTAR-K, ISR and targeting aircraft.
L3Harris showcased a model of the Global 6500 “Phoenix” AEW&C at the #TADTE2025. The aircraft, based on the Bombardier Global 6500 business jet, is equipped with the latest-generation EL/W-2085 CAEW (L&S) dual-band AESA radar from Israeli company ELTA Systems, using GaN… https://t.co/Jfms6K3XzA pic.twitter.com/0rnRYuRI8c
— 笑脸男人 (@lfx160219) September 20, 2025
The Phoenix AEW&C aircraft has a Israeli-made dual-mode EL/W-2085 CAEW AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar, that operates in the L&S bands, and has GaN (Gallium Nitride) transceivers.
Bombardier’s Global series
The Global 6500, a longer-range variant of the Global 6000, is also the platform of choice for the U.S. Army’s next-generation ISR, deep sensing High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System (HADES) program, the Saab GlobalEye AEW&C, the Rapidly Configurable To Any Mission-X (RAPCON-X) for the U.S. Army’s Theater Level High-Altitude Expeditionary Next Aerial-Signals Intelligence (ATHENA) program, and the proposed Advanced Maritime Multi Mission Platform for Italy.
The Global 6000 is the carrier aircraft for the E-11 Battlefield Airborne Communication Node (BACN) and the Pegasus signal intelligence (SIGINT) aircraft. The Global 6000/6500 airframes are also widely used in the civilian sector, easing logistics and maintenance and thus making them a popular choice for special mission military aircraft, ranging from airborne radars, ISR and electronic/signals intelligence.
Korean Air and LIG nex1 unveil its concept for ROKAF EW aircraft based on Bombardier Global 6500.
ROKAF’s local AWACS is also planned to be built on Global 6500.https://t.co/w5DuRi8Z5S
— FacelessMan (@FacelessManTwit) August 21, 2025
The Global 6500 was introduced in 2018, featuring upgraded Rolls-Royce BR710 Pearl engines, with up to 13% lower fuel burn for better operating costs and 9% more thrust. Also, the aircraft has better hot and high performance compared to the Global 6000 and 600 NM of additional range.
Taiwan’s E-2 fleet and AEW&C need
The RoCAF already operates five E-2K AEW&Cs out of an original fleet of six. One was seriously damaged in November 2022 after skidding off the runway at Pingtung County Air Base, “after the landing gear was not deployed because of pilot error,” according to a Feb. 5, 2025 Taipei Times report. The service acquired four E-2T aircraft in 1995 and two more in 2005, which were upgraded to the E-2K standard in 2013.
The same report also repeated a demand, by an unnamed source, to buy E-2D Advanced Hawkeye variants to replace the older E-2Ks “in the face of increased Chinese incursions into areas east of Taiwan.” This was amid the Legislative Yuan suspending US$2.73 billion of the Executive Yuan’s proposed defense budget.
We reported in June 2024 here at The Aviationist about the RoCAF headquarters reaching out to U.S. and French aerospace companies for new aerial refueling tankers and AEW&C aircraft.
Sensor and C2 capabilities aside, the compact size of the E-2 open options for agile basing. Operators that have employed the Hawkeye in airstrip ops include Singapore – which retired their Group 0 a/c in 2010) and Taiwan, which still fly their E-2Ks in highway ex.s occasionally. https://t.co/PxGtblLrXL pic.twitter.com/d9YXsJ8iiJ
— Roy Choo (@RXRoy) June 12, 2025
TVBS News identified the E-2 Hawkeye as one of the platforms being considered. The RoCAF invited delegations from these countries “to conduct briefings and discussions on aerial tankers to gain willingness to supply and sell them.”
A previous plan to buy the E-2Ds had been cancelled owing to the “high price tag.” However, Taipei Times added that as “assembly lines have been activated to fulfill a Japanese contract” and this “represented a special opportunity for Taiwan […] this year.”
On Jul. 19, 2024, the Department of War (previously the Department of Defense) modified a previous contract with Northrop Grumman to the tune of nearly $1.5 billion, in which it requested nine E-2D Advanced Hawkeyes. This was one to allow the U.S. Navy and the JASDF (Japan Air Self-Defense Force) to increase their existing Hawkeye units by four and five aircraft, respectively.
The Advanced Hawkeye differs from the original E-2C for the addition of a new radar system, missile defense capabilities, multi-sensor integration and a tactical glass cockpit. Currently, the USN operates 97 E-2Ds acquired between 2012 and 2023, while the JASDF employs five of them, procured between 2019 and 2020,
