NASHUA, N.H. - BAE Systems has received a contract from Lockheed Martin to manufacture and deliver AN/ASQ-239 electronic warfare (EW) systems for F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft, including systems for F-35 Lots 20-22 and retrofit and modernization systems for earlier aircraft.
The AN/ASQ-239 provides the F-35 with integrated electromagnetic-spectrum sensing, radar warning, targeting support, and self-protection capabilities. The system collects and processes electromagnetic energy across a 360-degree field of view to help identify, monitor, analyze, and respond to threats. It can also detect and geolocate electronic emitters, giving the aircraft information it can use to evade, engage, counter, or jam threats.
The EW system also contributes to the F-35's sensor-fusion architecture. A Lockheed Martin technical paper describing the aircraft's mission systems says the AN/ASQ-239 provides emitter tracks to the sensor-fusion function, which combines EW track reports with information from other sensors, including the aircraft's radar and Distributed Aperture System, and presents the resulting information to the pilot.
Related: Northrop Grumman wins $29.2 million Navy contract for AN/WSN-12 navigation systems
The AN/ASQ-239 operates alongside the F-35's AN/APG-81 active electronically scanned array radar, which also incorporates electronic warfare functions. Northrop Grumman says the multifunction radar can support electronic protection, electronic attack, and electronic support measures, illustrating the integration of radar and EW functions within the F-35's mission-systems architecture.
The AN/ASQ-239 is designed to operate in signal-dense environments and provide rapid-response capabilities, including radio-frequency and infrared countermeasures. BAE Systems has also developed technology-insertion upgrades to accommodate additional capabilities as threats evolve. An earlier BAE technology insertion delivered the system's existing functionality in a smaller footprint, reducing volume and power requirements and creating additional space for future F-35 modernization.
The current production effort incorporates automation, updated system designs, and supply-chain investments intended to increase production capacity. BAE Systems says it will use its facilities in Austin, Texas, and Manchester, Merrimack, and Nashua, N.H., to support production.
