Defense News
February 25 - March 3, 2002
Pg. 6

U.S. Navy, Air Force To Trim Electronic Warfare Options

By Gail Kaufman and Frank Tiboni, Washington

The Pentagon’s acquisition chief has told the U.S. Navy and Air Force to devise a three-phase plan to put new electronic warfare capabilities in the air as early as 2004.

Edward "Pete" Aldridge, undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics, requested proposals by June 3. He wants the services to reduce substantially the Pentagon’s 27 options, with costs ranging from $21 billion to $86 billion, to provide the military services with electronic jamming capabilities between 2010 and 2030.

In a Jan. 10 memo to Navy Secretary Gordon England and Air Force Secretary James Roche, Aldridge said possible solutions might include an air-launched robotic jammer and a new high-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle to be developed jointly by the services.

The services’ proposed solutions are to be included in their 2004 program objective memoranda (POM), Aldridge said. The POM is each service’s six-year future acquisition plan.

"I plan to hold a review of AEA [airborne electronic attack] technologies and opportunities on June 3, in preparation for the program review," Aldridge said in the memo, a copy of which was obtained by Defense News. "I would appreciate a presentation at that time from each of your services identifying specific future capability needs, including fielding dates."

In a classified 2,000-page study completed Dec. 15, a small team of military and civilian defense officials outlined 27 possible ways to provide the services with electronic jamming capabilities.

During the first phase, from 2004 to 2009, the services would receive new electronic warfare equipment. The EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare plane will be phased out in 2009.

As candidates for that first phase, Aldridge said the services should consider programs such as the Mini Air-Launched Decoy equipped with a jammer. The decoy is built by Northrop Grumman Corp., Los Angeles.

In the second phase, beginning in 2009, Aldridge envisions a "joint core component aircraft" to begin replacing the Prowler with an aircraft comparable to a new electronic attack A-6 or an F/A-18 built by Boeing Co., Chicago, the memo said.

In the third phase, to begin at an unspecified date, the services are told to consider a joint program such as an electronic warfare version of the Joint Strike Fighter, built by Lockheed Martin Corp., Bethesda, Md., or a new high-altitude joint unmanned aerial vehicle, the memo said.

"The joint assessment should provide justification for the cost-effectiveness of all specific major AEA programs planned for initiation during 2004 to 2009," the memo said. "Any new multi-role AEA systems to provide capabilities beyond the AEA function should be justified on the basis of relevant analysis."

Navy and Air Force spokesmen told Defense News Feb. 21 their services are in the process of analyzing the results of the AEA/Analysis of Alternatives Prowler study completed Dec. 15, and will be prepared to provide senior Pentagon leaders with recommendations by June.

Electronic warfare experts said they are encouraged by the Pentagon’s intentions, particularly because Aldridge is pressing forward with the findings in the 22-month study beyond replacing the Prowler by 2009.

"Aldridge’s plan really decreases the likelihood that the results are going to be shelved and provides the analysis of alternatives with some legs," said Christopher Bolkom, an analyst with the Congressional Research Service, the analytical arm of the U.S. Congress.

"By including the Mini Air-Launched Decoy as one of the illustrative benchmarks for [Program Objective Memorandum] coordination, Aldridge appears to be broadening the scope beyond original electronic attack analysis of alternatives," Bolkom added.

The decoy is not technically considered an electronic attack asset because it does not jam enemy sensors. Instead, it seduces adversaries into turning on surface-to-air missile radar systems, which can then be detected by anti-radar munitions and jamming devices.

The co-chairman of the Electronic Warfare Working Group on Capitol Hill said the Pentagon’s steps are logical.

"It appears the Pentagon is taking the right approach. Tough, long-term program decisions need to be made," Rep. Joe Pitts, R-Pa., told Defense News Feb. 21.

However, Pitts said he will insist the Pentagon’s Prowler solution be a joint one.

"The services must work together. They must complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses," Pitts said. "It cannot be a Navy or Air Force mission. It must be a U.S. military mission."

A retired Air Force official said the U.S. military should be looking at the bigger electronic warfare picture.

"This effort is not about replacing the EA-6B. It is about how to execute electronic attack in support of the next generation of air combat weapons and threats, and how this whole piece fits together," the retired official said.

The retired official said service rivalries may hamper the second phase of the program, during which Navy F/A-18E/Fs and Air Force F-22s are under consideration,

"The Air Force likes the F-22, but it is not carrier capable; the Navy likes the F/A-18E/F, but it would not be bought by the Air Force and the Marine Corps," the official added. "Calling this a joint program and getting the other services to pay would only come with pressure."

Ultimately, the Joint Strike Fighter would be a logical long-term joint program, this retired official said.

"If this were to happen, the U.S. military would have an electronic attack aircraft that could be bought and flown by all services, and would be a great foreign military sales product as a joint NATO aircraft," he said.

The head of an association dedicated to improving the U.S. military’s electronic warfare capability also agreed the Pentagon’s approach is rational.

"The Pentagon is asking the Navy and the Air Force to define requirements, to finalize cost details and to identify tradeoffs," Vern Luke, executive director of the Association of the Old Crows, Alexandria, Va., told Defense News Feb. 20.

The Pentagon needs to take a multi-faceted approach to rebuilding the U.S. military's electronic warfare capability, which disintegrated after the Persian Gulf War, Luke added.