Supersonic SIGINT: Will F-35, F-22 Also Play EW Role?

F/A-22 Cutaway(click to view full) Touted as the world’s next-generation stealthy jet fighters and attack aircraft, the F/A-22 Raptor and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) may also excel in another area: electronic eavesdropping. The aircrafts’ combination of powerful phased array AESA radars, passive electromagnetic antennas and sensors embedded throughout their frames, powerful onboard computer processing, and secure high-bandwidth communications will give them capabilities once available only to dedicated electronic attack aircraft. As both of these aircraft programs come under threat of further reductions or cancellation, Pentagon officials are becoming more willing to discuss some of these additional capabilities – and their implications. Earlier generations of electronic warfare aircraft have taken one of three paths: EA-6B Prowler(click to view full) The most common tactical option for electronic attack takes an existing airframe such as the A-6 Intruder (EA-6B Prowler) or F-111 Aardvark (the recently-retired EF-111 Raven, aka. “Spark Vark”), then modifies it via new wiring, changes to the airframe, and additional pods. The price has typically been reduced performance, reduced weapons capability, and sometimes even a larger basic radar signature for the airframe. The pending EA-18G Growler, based on the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet, has avoided some but not all of […]