RTX Raytheon to prototype Advanced Electronic Warfare for US Navy’s F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet.

The U.S. Navy awarded Raytheon, an RTX business, an $80 million contract in a down-select to prototype Advanced Electronic Warfare, or ADVEW, for the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet. This prototype will be considered as a replacement for the existing AN/ALQ-214 integrated defensive electronic countermeasure and AN/ALR-67(V)3 radar warning receiver with a consolidated solution that will deliver superior electronic warfare capabilities to the backbone of the Navy's carrier air wing.

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A US Navy F/A-18F Super Hornet of the Strike Fighter Squadron 41 (VFA-41) "Black Aces", based at Naval Air Station (NAS) Lemoore, California (CA), conducts a mission over the Persian Gulf. The Hornet is armed with an AIM-9 Sidewinder missile on the wingtip and an AGM-65 Maverick missile on the pylon. Tucked under the intake is an AN/ASQ-228 ATFLIR (Advanced Targeting Forward Looking InfraRed) pod. Also under the fuselage, a 370-gallon External Fuel Tank (Picture source: TSGT Rob Tabor, USAF/Wikipedia)

"These advancements are paving the way for the next generation of electronic warfare," said Bryan Rosselli, president of Advanced Products & Solutions at Raytheon. "We are completely replacing and consolidating the legacy systems into a one-box solution that will deliver a generational refresh to the electronic warfare capability for the lifetime of the Super Hornet."

Raytheon's Advanced Electronic Warfare offering will provide significant performance upgrades by modernizing existing electronic warfare systems into fewer components and incorporating government-defined open architecture. Development of this new solution will closely align and integrate with other combat-proven, radio frequency sensors and effectors employed by the Super Hornet. ADVEW will ensure F/A-18E/Fs maintain their operational electronic warfare advantage, while significantly improving survivability against advanced, complex threats.

Development and testing of ADVEW will mainly take place in Goleta, California. During the prototype phase, the system will undergo preliminary design review, critical design review, and flight testing over 36 months.