Navy orders 12 new F/A-18E and EA-18G carrier based electronic warfare (EW) and bomber combat jets

PATUXENT RIVER NAS, Md., 2 March 2017 – U.S. Navy aviation experts are ordering 12 new advanced carrier-basedelectronic warfare (EW) and bomber combat jets under terms of a $678.7 million contract announced this week.

Officials of the Naval Air Systems Command at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Md., are asking the Boeing Co. in St. Louis to build seven lot 40 EA-18G electronic warfare (EW) aircraft and avionics, as well as five F/A-18E jet fighter-bomber aircraft.

The EA-18G, known as the Growler, is a variant of the F/A-18F Super Hornet Block II fighter-bomber, and is for the airborne electronic attack mission.

The EA-18G combines the capability of the Super Hornet with the latest airborne electronic attack avionics suite. The EA-18G’s sensors and weapons are designed to counter enemy air defenses using reactive and preemptive jamming techniques.

Related: Boeing to upgrade RF and microwave avionics on Navy F/A-18E/F Super Hornet combat aircraft

The EA-18G is effective not only in the traditional stand-off jamming mission, but also in the escort role, using the speed and agility of a Super Hornet.

With its advanced electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, digital data links, and air-to-air missiles, the EA-18G has self-protection capability and also is effective for target identification and attack.

The Growler has a crew of two, is 60 feet long, has a 44.5-foot wingspan, is 16 feet high, and can carry almost seven and a half tons of weapons fuel, sensors, and auxiliary avionics.

The single-seat F/A-18E Super Hornet, meanwhile, is an all-weather fighter and attack aircraft for attack applications such as interdiction and close air support, as well as air-to-air fighter and self-defense capabilities.

Related: Navy orders 15 Boeing EA-18G Growler electronic warfare (EW) jets to jam and destroy enemy radar

Compared to the original F/A-18 A through D models, the F/A-18E Super Hornet has longer range, an aerial refueling capability, increased survivability, and improved carrier suitability. It can carry JDAM, JSOW, and JASSM smart munitions.

On this contract Boeing will do the work in El Segundo, Torrance, and Irvine, Calif.; St. Louis; Bethpage and Greenlawn, N.Y.; Fort Worth, Texas; Mesa, Ariz.; Ontario, Canada; Vandalia, Ohio; and Bloomington, Minn., and should be finished by February 2019.

For more information contact the Boeing Co. Defense, Space & Security segment online at www.boeing.com/defense, or Naval Air Systems Command at www.navair.navy.mil.

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