A pair of Boeing EA-18G Growlers, XE 573 166857 and XE 571 166855 of the VX-9 “Vampires” bank over the desert
The U.S. Navy’s AN/ALQ-249 Next Generation Jammer Increment 1 mid-band program is on track, Naval Air Systems Command (Navair) said. The program completed a critical design review at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, last month.
The program can now move to the engineering and manufacturing development phase, as warfighter requirements, fabrication, demonstration and test can proceed. Review was completed by the Airborne Electronic ttack Systems and EA-6B program office (PMA-234). The program now enters the engineering and manufacturing development phase. Raytheon Space and Air Systems is the pod prime contractor, and Boeing is the prime contractor for aircraft integration, using its EA-18G Growler.
“Once fielded, it will transform the way the U.S. Navy conducts electronic warfare,” Navair said. “The system will address the emerging, advanced threats and increased threat density using the latest active electronically scanned array, also known as AESA, digital and software-based technologies.”