Jane's Defence Weekly
June 4, 2003

US Outlines New Electronic Attack Aircraft

By Craig Hoyle and Andrew Koch

More information has emerged on two new electronic attack (EA) aircraft that could equip US forces for decades to come.

One, a variant of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) and dubbed the EA-35B by its developers, could be fielded to the US Marine Corps (USMC). The US Navy (USN), meanwhile, has announced its intention to develop and procure the EA-18G: a further development of Boeing's F/A-18F multirole fighter.

Lockheed Martin, which is working on the EA-35B concept, has released its first artist's impression of the aircraft, revealing the possible development of a two-seat version of the JSF: a step previously ruled out as prohibitively expensive.

The EA-35B concept is a leading contender to replace the current US EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare (EW) aircraft, which is expected to remain in the USMC inventory until at least 2015.

Lt Gen Michael Hough, the service's Deputy Commandant for Aviation, said in May that the new system "could be a large part of the solution" to replacing the USMC's Prowler fleet. The other contender, the EA-18G, will replace the navy's carrier-based Prowlers, allowing those aircraft to be transferred to USMC service. The marines will maintain four EA-6B squadrons, as well as training aircraft, until the availability of a new platform.

USMC and navy officials note that no decision on what will ultimately replace the Prowler has been made. A decision is expected for the Fiscal Year 2006 (FY06) budget.

The EA-35B development would retain the same internal weapons carriage capability as the baseline JSF, with jamming equipment and other sensors to be embedded in the aircraft's wings and fuselage. This will ensure that the conduct of EA operations would see "no substantial signature degradation" from the stealthy F-35 design, Ivor Evans, F-35 international programme manager for Lockheed Martin UK, told IQPC's Fighter Conference in London on 21 May.

If developed, the EA-35B would also be of great interest to the Israel Air Force, which wants to acquire a two-seat version of the JSF to meet its operational requirements (Jane's Defence Weekly 28 August 2002). Last February, Israel joined the F-35 programme's system development and demonstration phase as a Security Co-operation Participant under an approximately $150 million commitment.

While conceding that fielding an EA-35B would reduce production commonality, Evans told JDW: "It might be that the cost [of producing the aircraft] is worthwhile, due to the current paucity of EA capabilities." This version of the JSF could be available by 2015, he said, "but only if someone says it's a good idea and tells us to go ahead".

The USN has also released more details of its plans to replace its carrier-based Prowler inventory with the EA-18G. The service plans to replace the EA-6Bs in its 10 carrier air wings with 90 EA-18Gs, with five of those aircraft per operational squadron rather than the current four with the Prowler.

The additional aircraft are intended to help meet the heavy demand placed on the EW platforms - a capability that has been consistently in short supply. Navy officials say the total EA-18G buy could go higher if other roles are added, noting that such options are currently under study. The 2001 Defense Department-wide airborne EA analysis of alternatives study recommended that a total of 150 US EA aircraft be fielded, split between the navy, the USMC and the air force.

The navy will pay $1.5 billion to develop the EA-18G and an estimated $66 million per unit to procure the aircraft starting in FY06, said Lisa Nyalko, the navy's EA-18G deputy programme manager. Deliveries of an initial 90 aircraft are anticipated between 2008 and 2012, according to other navy sources.

The EA-18G, and possibly the EA-35B, would use the Prowler's upgraded Improved Capability III (ICAP III) EA suite as its basic mission system building block. The ICAP III system offers reactive jamming to match modern surface-to-air missile threats, as well as faster emitter-locating and targeting, said Capt John Scheffler, the navy's EA-6B programme manager.

A decision on whether to begin low-rate production of Northrop Grumman's ICAP III system is expected "in a few weeks", he said, following review of an operational assessment report. An initial operational capability is anticipated in 2005.