The US Navy has approved the Next Generation Jammer Mid-Band (NGJ-MB) for production following a review by the Milestone Decision Authority (MDA), its developer Raytheon Intelligence & Space revealed.
The jammer, developed for the Boeing EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft, uses “software-based and Active Electronically Scanned Array technologies” to deny, disrupt and degrade adversary air-defense systems and communications.
“We’re well into development testing. It’s time to move towards production,” said Annabel Flores, vice president of Electronic Warfare Systems at Raytheon Intelligence & Space.
“We’re ready to give the Navy and our Australian partners a leap forward towards the electromagnetic spectrum superiority they need.”
Ready for Initial Production
The MDA reviewed the system’s overall performance, assessing its readiness to enter Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP), the Virginia-based defense firm said.
“The Milestone C decision drives home the stability and maturity of NGJ-MB,” said Flores.
“The system is ready for validation and LRIP, and we’re gearing up for the delivery of this critical capability to the fleet.”
Test Flight
The decision comes less than a year after the system was first test flown on an EA-18G Growler last August. The test flight followed 600 hours of ground testing, Raytheon said.
The system has gone through over 145 hours of developmental flight testing using Mission Systems and Aeromechanical pods.
It has also completed over 3,100 hours of anechoic chamber and lab testing, Raytheon added. An anechoic, or non-echoing chamber, is a room designed to completely soak up reflections of either sound or electromagnetic waves.