BAE Systems prepares EW upgrade for USAF
Computerised image of EC-37B. (Image: BAE Systems)
EC-37B aircraft replacing EC-130Hs in USAF service will include Compass Call Baseline 4.
The new EC-37B EW aircraft for the USAF will include the latest version of the Compass Call system from BAE Systems, the company announced on 1 December.
It added that Compass Call Baseline 4 is ‘a critical upgrade’ for the EC-37B and it is based on Small Adaptive Bank of Electronic Resources (SABER) technology from BAE Systems.
Using a suite of software-defined radios with an open system architecture, and integrating third-party applications, SABER transitions from a hardware to a software-based electromagnetic spectrum warfare capability on Compass Call.
BAE Systems has provided Compass Call for the EC-130H since 1981, to disrupt adversary C2 communications, radar, and navigation systems.
The EC-37B is based on the Gulfstream G550 commercial business jet. The EC-37B programme began in FY2017 with an estimated procurement cost of $1.45 billion for ten aircraft, although Shephard Defence Insight notes delays in the contracting phase.
There are 13 EC-130H aircraft in USAF service with an expected retirement date of 2025.
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