The aircraft that NATO relies on to achieve air superiority in the event of war

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is a defensive alliance created in 1949 and currently made up of 32 countries.

An airman shows the interior of the E-3 Sentry, the sophisticated radar aircraft operated by NATO
NATO shows how an interception is carried out and real examples of intercepted aircraft

One of the missions of this alliance is to guarantee the integrity of its member countries' airspace against any kind of threat. To this end, NATO has structures that serve to coordinate the military air control systems of its member countries (its radar network), and it also has the means to coordinate the allied aircraft necessary to intercept potential hostile aircraft.

Today, with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the possibility of a new large-scale war in Europe no longer seems so remote. That is why allied countries are increasing their defense spending in order to improve their military capabilities in the face of a possible Russian aggression against one or more NATO countries. Aviation would play a very important role in such a scenario, as allied air forces would face the challenge of achieving air superiority in the event of war, a task that is anything but easy.

In military circles, air superiority refers to the control of airspace, enabling friendly forces to operate by land, sea, and air without being threatened by enemy aircraft. A few days ago, NATO released a video explaining the types of aircraft it uses to achieve this air superiority:

One of the most important types of aircraft for achieving air superiority are the Airborne Early Warning and Control Systems (AWACS), essentially flying radars that can detect enemy aircraft even at low altitudes. NATO currently has a fleet of 14 E-3A Sentry AWACS aircraft (pictured below), operated by the NATO Airborne Early Warning and Control Force (NAEW&C Force). Three years ago, I wrote about these aircraft here; they are based in Geilenkirchen, Germany.

In addition to AWACS, the allied countries contribute a large fleet of more than 2,700 combat aircraft. These aircraft are of different types: interceptors (the aircraft tasked with shooting down enemy aircraft), attack aircraft, close air support aircraft (those that provide low-level ground support), electronic warfare aircraft (tasked with jamming enemy radars), and the so-called "Wild Weasels", which are the aircraft that lead air attacks and are responsible for suppressing enemy air defenses, mainly radars, using AGM-88 HARM anti-radar missiles.

Furthermore, NATO has its own fleet of 5 Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk drones (bellow), unmanned aircraft responsible for reconnaissance and aerial surveillance missions.

Obviously, all these aircraft cannot remain airborne indefinitely. To provide in-flight refueling, NATO countries maintain a fleet of approximately 600 tanker aircraft, tasked with keeping fighter jets airborne while they carry out their missions. The United States' contribution to this fleet is obviously very significant, as it possesses by far the largest air force in the Alliance.

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Main photo: NATO.