F-15E Eagle fighters undergoing critical electronic warfare testing

[Zarvan]

Photo by Staff Sgt. Matthew Lotz


The U.S. Air Force has reported that its F-15E Eagle fighter aircraft fleet is currently undergoing critical electronic warfare testing at the Benefield Anechoic Facility (BAF) on Edwards Air Force Base, California. A testing phase began recently and is currently under way.

This F-15E is outfitted with the Eagle Passive/Active Warning and Survivability System (EPAWSS). The EPAWSS is an integrated digital avionics system designed to protect the F-15E Eagle against enemy air defense systems, said Jon Danner, F-15 Division Test Manager at Air Force Life Cycle Management Center.

“The Air Force is modernizing its F-15 fleet with the EPAWSS, which is capable of detecting, identifying, denying, degrading, disrupting, and defeating modern and emerging threat systems in contested environments,” Danner said.

The testing is a collaborative effort among the F-15 System Program Office (SPO) at Wright-Patterson AFB in Ohio, the 96th Test Wing’s 46th Test Squadron at Eglin AFB in Florida, the 412th Test Wing’s 412th Electronic Warfare Group’s 772nd Test Squadron at Edwards and contractors, Boeing and BAE Systems.

Danner explained that the current electronic warfare self-protection suite on the F-15E Eagle uses 1970’s analog technology designed for combat operations in environments defended by 1980s-era radar-based ground and air threats.

Today’s emerging threat environment is much more diverse, complex and adaptive. Additionally, the aging technology is becoming more difficult and expensive to support, Danner added.

The EPAWSS takes advantages of today’s computing, receiver and transmitter technologies to provide a quicker, smarter response to the threats and better actionable information to the pilot, said Ed Sabat, Project Development Lead and Civilian Director of Operations, 772nd Test Squadron.

The first of multiple test phases at the BAF was completed in April 2019. The ongoing tests are required to collect the data to establish the integration of the EPAWSS radar and missile warning capabilities and the electronic counter measures ECM onto the F-15E platform, added Sabat.

https://defence-blog.com/news/f-15e...-critical-electronic-warfare-testing.html/amp

 

[CrazyZ]

Boeing has got to get money some how. I suspect USAF will be buying more F-15's. No doubt Germany is getting closed door pressure to but super hornets for similar reasons.