US Navy’s new jammer declared operational

The US Navy (USN) has declared Initial Operational capability (IOC) for the NGJ-MB after trials in the second half of 2024 of the jammer’s high-end capabilities during Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group’s five-month deployment.

The system will be used on USN and Royal Australian Air Force EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft and has been designed to target, interrupt and attack advanced radar threats, communications, data links and non-traditional radio frequency threats.

The system reduces adversary targeting ranges, disrupts adversary kill chains and supports kinetic weapons to target. The NGJ-MB allows crews to operate effectively at extended ranges and attack multiple targets simultaneously.

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The USN’s PMA-234 programme office is responsible for acquiring, delivering and sustaining electronic attack systems.

Lt Cdr Michael Bedwell, EA-18G Naval Flight Officer and NGJ-MB deputy integrated product team lead, said the system will help “maintain spectrum dominance”.

“The era of isolated surface-to-air missile systems, which operate within a non-agile and limited frequency range, is behind us,” Bedwell said.

In December 2024, the USN awarded Raytheon a US$590 million follow-on production contract for NGJ-MB. Earlier in the year, the company was awarded a $192 million contract to develop the Next-Generation Jammer Mid-Band Expansion (NGJ-MBX) – an upgrade to the NGJ-MB.

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