E-6 Mercury
| E-6 Mercury |
|---|
| A United States Navy E-6 Mercury |
A United States Navy E-6B at RAF Mildenhall in 2001. |
| Description |
|---|
| Role | |
| Crew | 22 |
| Dimensions |
|---|
| Length | 45.8 m |
| Wingspan | 45.2 m |
| Height | 12.9 m |
| Wing area | |
| Weights |
|---|
| Empty | |
| Loaded | 154,400 kg |
| Maximum take-off | |
| Powerplant |
|---|
| Engines | Four CFMI CFM-56-2A-2 high-bypass turbofans |
| Power | |
| Performance |
|---|
| Maximum speed | 960 km/h |
| Combat range | |
| Ferry range | |
| Service ceiling | 12,200 m |
| Rate of climb | |
| Armament |
|---|
| Guns | |
| Bombs | |
The
Boeing E-6 Mercury is a
United States of America military aircraft. It operates as an airborne command post and communications centre, relaying instructions from the
National Command Authority. Its role in relaying to the
fleet ballistic missile submarines gives it the suffix
TACAMO ("Take Charge and Move Out").
Like the
E-3 Sentry AWACS and
KC-135 tanker aircraft, the E-6 Mecury is adapted from Boeing's
707-300 commercial airliner. Only one version of the E-6 currently exists, the E-6B. The E-6B is an upgraded version of the E-6A that now includes a battlestaff area for the
USSTRATCOM Airborne Command Post and new the flight deck systems replacing the aging 1970s-style cockpit with an off-the-shelf
Boeing 737NG cockpit. This greatly increases the situational awareness of the pilot and saves significant cost over a custom avionics package.
The E-6A was designed to replace the
EC-130 and was accepted by the US Navy in August 1989, sixteen were delivered up to 1992. The first E-6B was accepted in December 1997 and the entire E-6 fleet was modified to the E-6B standard.
E-6B* Height: 12.9 m
* Weight: (Maximum) 154,400 kg
* Range: 12,144 km, with 6 hours loiter time
* Cost: $141.7 million
*
E-6 MERCURY (TACAMO) at
FAS website
