COLOGNE, Germany \u2014 NATO officials plan to spend $1 billion on upgrades to the alliance\u2019s fleet of AWACS reconnaissance planes, according to Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI can confirm we will sign a contract upgrading, modernizing the AWACS fleet \u2014 $1 billion,\u201d Stoltenberg was quoted as telling reporters ahead of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers<\/a> in Brussels on Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The news comes coupled with an announcement that the first of five Global Hawk drones making up the Alliance Ground Surveillance program was en route from the United States to its future home base at Sigonella, Sicily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis reflects how NATO is investing in high-tech capabilities,\u201d NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu wrote on Twitter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Boeing-made AWACS planes, introduced in 1982, are slated to remain in service until 2035. Their job is to detect enemy missiles and aircraft threatening NATO airspace. Alliance pilots have flown the aircraft to support missions against the Islamic State group and to secure the eastern flank in the wake of Russia\u2019s annexation of Crimea in 2014.<\/p>\n\n\n\n NATO\u2019s website bills the AWACS enterprise as the \u201clargest collaborative venture\u201d and one of the few military assets owned and operated by the alliance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The fleet of AGS drones is based on the Northrop Grumman-made Block 40 Global Hawk of the U.S. Air Force. The primary job of the UAVs will be ground and maritime surveillance for commanders and deployed forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\t