Boeing EA-18G Growler
Boeing will soon receive a contract to kick off development of the EA-18G Block II Growler, the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command says in an acquisition notice.
The planned sole-source contract will be a cost-plus fixed-fee delivery order, beginning with a 31-month-long Phase 1 of the spiral upgrade, according to the presolicitation notice issued Feb. 16.
Phase 1 focused on upgrading the EA-18Gs Electronic Attack Unit (EAU), a computer processor installed inside space used as a gun pod on the F/A-18E/F.
The Next Generation Electronic Attack Unit (NGEAU) will “greatly enhance” the EA-18G’s ability to detect and respond to previously unknown signals amid a noisy background, the notice says.
The Navy also plans to upgrade the suite of wingtip-mounted radio-frequency receivers called the ALQ-218(V)2. The Airborne Electronic Attack Systems Enhancement (ASE) will upgrade the hardware and software for the suite’s receivers.
The combination of the new NGEAU and ASE is expected to keep the EA-18G relevant at least through the next decade. The Navy has not publicly released plans for replacing the EA-18G, but the service’s Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program is expected to phase out the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fleet by the 2040s.
“The Growler Block II consists of a foundational spiral upgrade that will implement the enabling infrastructure and architecture to facilitate incremental and innovative capability improvements required for Naval Aviation to regain and sustain an advantage in the electromagnetic spectrum until the EA-18G replacement,” the notice says.
