The U.S. Navy's "Advanced Super Hornet" will tie together an electronic attack system with a powerful new radar that would allow the aircraft to find, deceive and, perhaps, disable sophisticated, radar-guided air-to-air, surface-to-air and cruise missiles. Moreover, it could do so at ranges greater than that of new U.S. air-to-air and air-to-ground weapons.

Silence about these key features of the Super Hornet's advanced radar and integrated sensor package is being broken by U.S. Navy and aerospace industry officials just as the President's budget faces scrutiny by Congress. Supporters of the design say it will give the Block II Boeing-built Navy aircraft a fifth-generation capability similar to that of the F-22 Raptor and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The Hornet's electronic attack capability could become even more sophisticated with additional modifications, says Capt. Donald Gaddis, F/A-18E/F Super Hornet program manager.

Radar-guided, air-to-air missiles that worry U.S. planners are the Chinese PL-12, which is on the brink of entering service; the Russian R-77 (AA-12 Adder); the R-27R/ER (AA-10 Alamo) family, and possibly the AA-10's R-27P/EP passive receiver variants. In the world of antiship cruise missiles, the Russians have developed RF-seeker-based antiship systems that include the Novator 3M-54 (SS-N-27) family and NPO Mashinostroenia 3M-55 (SS-NX-26), which is also the basis of the Russo-Indian Brahmos. The YJ-63 is a Chinese antiship cruise missile; Iran has the RAAD, and North Korea has a system in development known as KN-01 in U.S. intelligence circles.

Many Navy and industry planners hope that the merits of the F/A-18E/F's advanced systems, which can detect, identify and attack new classes of very small targets, will help it survive any congressional predilection to trim upgrades that are crucial to the program. Moreover, the Super Hornet equipped with a fifth-generation radar and integrated sensor suite is expected to be a tough competitor for international fighter sales. The advanced package has already resulted in a likely sale of 24 aircraft to Australia and is being pitched for large fighter buys planned by Japan and India.

The newest version of the Boeing Super Hornet, equipped with an advanced, Raytheon-built APG-79 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, can spot small targets--even stealthy cruise missiles--at ranges great enough to allow an effective defense. Navy officials are loath to talk with any detail about the metrics of electronic attacks and admit only to "extremely significant tactical ranges" for EA effects against air-to-air and surface-to-air radars, Gaddis says. However, other Pentagon and aerospace industry officials say that while air-to-air missiles are struggling to reach the 60-100-mi.-range mark, some sophisticated electronic attack effects can reach well beyond that.

"That's at least 100 mi.," says a long-time Pentagon radar specialist. "There are different forms of electronic attack, and they include putting false targets or altered ranges, speeds and positions of real targets into the enemy's radars. Those are effects that require less power than jamming and therefore are effective at longer ranges."

An industry official with insight into AESA development says that the ability to affect a foe is limited by the enemy radar's range because the signal has to be captured, manipulated and returned. Therefore, long-range ground-based radars and even AWACS radars could be electronically attacked at ranges well over 100 mi. For air-to-air and surface-to-air missiles, the techniques would be the same but the effective ranges would be shorter.

The U.S. Navy's first AESA-equipped squadron has been developing combat procedures as the unit works up to its first deployment. VFA-213, flying all two-seat F/A-18F models, already has been through training cycles at NAS Fallon, Calif.'s "Strike U."

The Navy's concept of operations is to use combinations of EA-18 Growler electronic attack and the advanced Block 2 F/A-18E/F strike aircraft to offer self-protection, almost instantaneous location and identification of targets, and a variety of forms of electronic and conventional missile attack. That entity will be part of the advanced air wing in the Carrier Strike Group of 2024.

The U.S. Air Force is considering a similar approach--subtle effects versus brute power--in its next attempt at fielding a long-range, standoff jammer to protect its stealth aircraft fleet (AW&ST Jan. 22, p. 47) It's expected that advanced electronic warfare operations, including communications and network invasion and exploitation, may eventually be part of the Air Force's and Navy's capability. However, that's some years off and subject to budget realities.