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2017-05-13

Reading the Signals Wrong - Electronic Warfare Wins Wars

In World War II, the magnetron, or radio wave generator, became a key part of the Allies’ radar systems. The magnetron’s radio waves caused confusion among the enemy’s signals.

Electronic warfare today uses focused energy, usually radio waves or laser light, to confuse or disable an enemy’s electronics. It can also involve listening — collecting an enemy’s radio signals or sensing the radar of an incoming missile.

Today, Raytheon is developing tactical lasers, a next-generation “jammer” and other weapons, along with electrical systems capable of powering whatever innovations the future holds.

Thwarting Missiles with Electronics

Integrated electronic warfare suites provide unified solutions to halt enemy missiles and radars. They include:

Advanced Countermeasures Electronic System: Raytheon’s Advanced Countermeasures Electronic System (ACES) for aircraft is a fully-integrated electronic warfare (EW) suite with robust situational awareness and powerful jamming capabilities, reflecting the next generation of advanced EW for the F-16.

Designed to detect, identify and counter contemporary threats in a high density environment, ACES integrates Raytheon’s ALQ-187(V)2 jammer, ALR-93 radar warning receiver and ALE-47 countermeasures dispenser system — offering an effective and dependable advanced electronic countermeasures self-protection system for the F-16.

AN/SLQ-32(V): The AN/SLQ-32(V) shipboard EW system provides proven electronic support and countermeasure protection.

The SLQ-32(V) is the principal EW system carried by major US Navy surface ships, with more than 450 systems produced to date. The (V)1 and (V)2 suites are passive, providing early warning, identification and direction finding capability for simultaneous multiple threats.

The system provides full threat band frequency coverage, instantaneous azimuth coverage, 100 percent probability of intercept, and simultaneous response to multiple threats. It can detect aircraft search and target radars well before they detect the ship.

SEWIP: The Surface Electronic Warfare Improvement Program (SEWIP), is an evolutionary development block upgrade program for the AN/SLQ-32(V) EW system, offering incremental enhancements in capability. There are currently three established block upgrades, and a fourth planned.

SEWIP Block 1 provides enhanced EW capabilities to existing and new ship combat systems to improve anti-ship missile defense, counter targeting and counter surveillance capabilities.

SEWIP Block 2 provides enhanced Electronic Support (ES) via an upgraded ES antenna, ES receiver and an open combat system interface for the AN/SLQ-32.

SEWIP Block 3 will provide electronic attack (EA) capability improvements required for AN/SLQ-32(V) to keep pace with threats. This block upgrade will provide a common EA capability to all surface combatants outfitted with the active variant of the AN/SLQ-32. SEWIP Block 4 will provide advanced electro-optic and infrared capabilities to the AN/SLQ-32(V) system.

Providing a Cloak of Protection: Jammers

Enemies can’t target what they can’t see. Airborne jammers provide a cloak of protection, confusing adversaries, creating “ghost” aircraft and foiling sensors with focused radio energy. They include the Next Generation Jammer (NGJ), a cutting-edge electronic attack pod for the EA-18G Growler jet.

The NGJ was selected by the US Navy in 2013, replacing the ALQ-99 systems used on the EA-18G airborne electronic attack aircraft.

In 2016, the U.S. Navy awarded Raytheon a US$1B Next Generation Jammer engineering and manufacturing development contract.

Increasingly complex threats require airborne electronic attack to be more sophisticated than ever, providing greater precision, power, reactive speed and directivity. NGJ will integrate the most advanced electronic attack technology into the EA-18G to ensure superior mission performance.

MALD-J Decoy: The MALD-J decoy is the jammer variant of the basic decoy, and the first ever stand-in jammer to enter production. The unmanned MALD-J decoy navigates and operates much closer to the victim’s radar than conventional electronic warfare when jamming the electronics.

This allows aviators and aircraft to stay out of harm’s way. And, it is able to loiter in the target area for extended times – allowing plenty of time to complete the mission.

The weapon can operate alone or in pairs, but is designed to work with, and leverage, other electronic warfare platforms.

Reigning ‘HEL’ Upon The Enemy

Weapons that never need to be reloaded, such as high-energy lasers (HEL), can defend against enemy missiles, mortars, swarming boat attacks and other “close-in” threats. Raytheon provides high-energy laser weapon systems for sea, land and air applications.

High Energy Laser systems use a proprietary solid-state planar waveguide structure that generates high power output in a small, rugged design.

Featuring modular, scalable designs, HEL devices can be integrated with a variety of manned and unmanned airborne, shipboard, ground-mobile and ground-based platforms.

Lure Away Enemy Materiel with Airborne Decoys

Decoys keep enemies guessing with the art of deception. The ALE-50 is an aircraft-towed decoy which lures away enemy missiles. The ALE-50 acts as a preferential target that lures enemy missiles away by providing a much larger radar cross section than the aircraft. The protection it provides to aircraft and aircrews makes the ALE-50 one of the most important end-game electronic countermeasures available.

The ALE-50 towed decoy is currently operational on the F-16, F/A-18E/F, and B-1B aircraft.

There are fiber-optic towed decoys, including high-power variants, to protect both tactical and large aircraft. A “reel-out, reel-in” magazine enabling decoy reuse is also in development.

Anti-Radiation Missiles

The High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile, or HARM, detects and destroy radars and radar-directed artillery systems. Eight countries use the missile, and more than 4,000 have been used in combat.

The AGM-88 HARM is a joint U.S. Navy and Air Force program developed by the Navy and Raytheon.

HARM’s primary mission is to suppress or destroy surface-to-air missile radar and radar-directed air defence artillery systems. Once airborne, it can operate in three modes: pre-emptive, missile-as-sensor and self-protect. HARM is employed on a variety of navy, air force and marine corps aircraft including the EA-6B, F-16 and F/A-18.

Radar Warning Receivers

The AN/ALR-67 (V)3 digital radar warning receiver warns pilots of hostile radar activity, including radar-guided missiles. It dramatically enhances war fighter survivability through improved situational awareness.

It is now serving as the “System of Record” U.S. Navy radar warning receiver (RWR) on all front-line, carrier-based F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet tactical aircraft. In full rate production, it is the Naval Air Systems Command’s answer to a critical operational requirement, ensuring survivability in today’s complex, high-density environment.

The AN/ALR-67(V)3 is fully integrated with all avionics equipment on the F/A-18 A/B/C/D Hornets, as well as that on the F/A-18E/F Super Hornets.

The AN/ALR69A(V) detects and displays enemy airborne interceptors, surface-to-air missiles and anti-aircraft artillery weapon systems.

The upgraded AN/ALR-69A(V) RWR dramatically enhances aircrew survivability, providing “sensors forward” situational awareness at a substantially lower cost than competing systems.

Visualising the Invisible

U.S. Army is developing new capabilities for the Electronic Warfare Planning Management Tool, allowing operators to better orchestrate force manoeuvres.

Capability Drop II for Raytheon’s Electronic Warfare Planning and Management Tool, or EWPMT,enables commanders to detect, identify and manage electromagnetic signals.

For the first time, electromagnetic spectrum operators can plan electronic warfare and control the battlefield spectrum in one standard tool.

EWPMT features composable, open architecture. It has been a US Army program of record since 2014. It offers stand-alone, embedded training, allowing users to simulate a real, deployed environment for training.

Reference Text/Photo

www.raytheon.com

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