PREVIEW

The first-ever all-female crew to fly a NATO AWACS aircraft flew one of NATO’s enhanced vigilance activities mission over the alliance’s eastern flank this month (February2024).

The mission featured 22 servicewomen from eight NATO Allies, representing diverse backgrounds and roles in the Airborne Early Warning community. It involved servicewomen from Canada, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, and the US, and took place on 9 February.

Based in Geilenkirchen, Germany, AWACS supports Nato's Assurance Measures, initiated in 2014 after Russia's annexation of Crimea, demonstrating Natos's readiness and deterrence against Kremlin aggression.

The percentage of women in Nato's armed forces has doubled since 1998 - though it has taken until now for an all-female crew to fly a sortie like this.
The AWACS jets are known by the alliance as Nato's 'eyes in the sky' and are identified by their distinctive radar domes mounted on their fuselage.
NATO's air base in Geilenkirchen is home to a fleet of 14 of the Boeing E-3A AWACS aircraft. They also contribute to counter-terrorism efforts, including Operation Sea Guardian in the Mediterranean. AWACS has also been involved in missions in the United States following 9/11, in Libya, and in Afghanistan.
The aircraft also offer air surveillance assistance to safeguard the skies during Nato summits and other significant international gatherings held within the alliance.
Footage includes shots of the AWACS aircraft in Geilenkirchen, Germany and the AWACS aircraft flying a surveillance patrol over NATO’s eastern flank, as well as interviews with an Italian pilot and a US aircrew operator.