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EA-18G Jets on USS Abraham Lincoln Nuclear Carrier Signal New U.S. Electronic Warfare Phase.
U.S. Navy photos from USS Abraham Lincoln show EA‑18G Growlers carrying both legacy AN/ALQ‑99 pods and the new AN/ALQ‑249 Next Generation Jammer Mid‑Band. The images highlight routine operations while marking a clear step in integrating advanced electronic warfare into frontline carrier units.
New U.S. Navy photographs from the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) reveal EA-18G Growlers from VAQ-133 operating with a mixed loadout of legacy AN/ALQ-99 pods and the new AN/ALQ-249 Next Generation Jammer Mid-Band (NGJ-MB), signaling a tangible step in the U.S. Navy’s transition to its next era of carrier-based electronic warfare. Captured on November 24, 2025 and released through DVIDS, the images show the aircraft undergoing routine maintenance on the flight deck as the carrier strike group conducts operations in the U.S. 3rd Fleet area. While officially described as standard Indo-Pacific activities, the deployment offers a direct look at how the Navy is integrating new airborne electronic attack capabilities into frontline units at a moment of heightened global competition and growing focus on contested electromagnetic environments.
Newly released U.S. Navy imagery shows EA-18G Growlers aboard USS Abraham Lincoln operating with a mixed loadout of legacy AN/ALQ-99 and new AN/ALQ-249 jamming pods, illustrating a visible transition in U.S. carrier-based electronic warfare at a moment when Washington is simultaneously increasing pressure on Venezuela (Picture Source: U.S. Navy)
The photographs clearly highlight a transition phase: one aircraft carries the long-serving AN/ALQ-99 Tactical Jamming System while another mounts the AN/ALQ-249 NGJ-MB, providing a rare side-by-side view of the outgoing and incoming systems. This combination reflects an overlapping modernization strategy in which both generations will be flown simultaneously to preserve broad-spectrum coverage while NGJ increments mature. Although the operations take place in the Indo-Pacific, the visibility of these upgrades reverberates beyond the region, including in the Western Hemisphere, where Washington’s intensifying pressure on Venezuela has given renewed strategic weight to U.S. electronic attack, surveillance, and strike capabilities. In this context, each public glimpse of upgraded jamming equipment is scrutinized closely by allies, competitors, and regional actors.
The EA-18G Growler remains the U.S. Navy’s only dedicated carrier-based electronic attack platform, derived from the F/A-18F and optimized to provide stand-off jamming, escort support, and suppression of enemy air defenses. Its traditional backbone, the AN/ALQ-99, delivers broadband jamming through analog pods that have accumulated decades of operational data. NGJ-MB, by contrast, introduces a digital AESA-based architecture capable of generating multiple steerable beams, higher effective radiated power, and more resilient waveforms. Focused on the mid-band portion of the spectrum, home to many modern fire-control radars and targeting systems, the pod brings precision, speed, and adaptability that the legacy system cannot match. As the Navy continues to develop low-band and high-band increments, NGJ-MB forms the central pillar of a future family of pods designed to reshape the electromagnetic battlespace across a wide frequency range.
Development of NGJ-MB has stretched over more than a decade. Requirements for a successor to the AN/ALQ-99 were defined in 2008, the program formally launched in 2010, and flight testing began in 2020 at NAS Patuxent River. The pod achieved Initial Operating Capability in late 2024 following operational evaluations and a production contract award to Raytheon. According to open sources, VAQ-133 has already employed NGJ-MB in real-world conditions during a previous deployment aboard Abraham Lincoln, including missions related to the protection of commercial shipping under threat from missiles and drones in the Red Sea. The Royal Australian Air Force, a full participant in the program, has invested in NGJ-MB from the outset, aligning interoperability, tactics development, and future joint operations.
The mixed loadout seen aboard Abraham Lincoln highlights how the Growler community is layering capabilities during this transition phase. The legacy AN/ALQ‑99 pod continues to provide broad jamming coverage against older or less advanced emitters, while the Next Generation Jammer Mid‑Band (NGJ‑MB) delivers focused, high‑power effects against modern radars and communications systems. Used together, they give carrier air wings the ability to shape the electromagnetic spectrum with both range and precision, strengthening strike group survivability and enabling operations closer to contested coastlines. At the same time, the dual‑pod configuration produces valuable operational data on the interaction between legacy and digital jamming methods, insights that will inform updates to doctrine, training, and decisions on when to retire the older system.
Strategically, the presence of NGJ-equipped Growlers in the Indo-Pacific aligns with Washington’s long-term effort to maintain dominance in a region increasingly shaped by China’s expanding military capabilities, dense coastal defenses, and rapid advances in electronic warfare. The U.S. Navy’s messaging surrounding Abraham Lincoln’s deployment emphasizes commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, but the timing also intersects with escalating tensions in the Western Hemisphere. Recent sanctions and designations directed at Venezuelan state-linked networks, combined with reciprocal measures from Caracas, including the revocation of airline operating rights, have deepened the political standoff. Although unrelated to Indo-Pacific operations, the modernization of U.S. airborne electronic attack capabilities is interpreted in Venezuela and elsewhere as part of a broader pattern in which Washington seeks to maintain flexible options across multiple regions.
From a broader geopolitical perspective, modernizing electronic attack capabilities provides U.S. commanders with critical tools to manage crises below the threshold of open conflict. Whether countering advanced anti-access and area-denial systems in the Indo-Pacific or addressing regional instability in the Western Hemisphere, these advancements reinforce strategic flexibility. By publicly demonstrating the operational coexistence of the AN/ALQ-99 and AN/ALQ-249 pods, Washington conveys both readiness and innovation: the U.S. Navy is preserving proven capabilities while integrating next-generation systems to confront an evolving spectrum of threats, from advanced integrated air defenses to increasingly networked irregular forces.
Seen from the deck of USS Abraham Lincoln, the maintenance and mixed loadouts on VAQ-133’s EA-18Gs capture a moment where operational routine and strategic signaling converge. The simultaneous use of legacy and next-generation jammers reflects an active transition in U.S. naval aviation, one that strengthens the carrier strike group’s ability to operate in contested electromagnetic environments at a time when electronic warfare has become central to deterrence, crisis response, and great-power competition. Whether in the Indo-Pacific or in other theaters where U.S. interests face pressure, the Growlers aboard Abraham Lincoln underscore how incremental technical changes can shape strategic choices long before the first aircraft leaves the deck.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.