US Navy awards $580 million contract for next-generation jammer system for EA-18G Growler aircraft
News, US May 19, 2025 No Comments on US Navy awards $580 million contract for next-generation jammer system for EA-18G Growler aircraft3 minute read
The U.S. Navy has awarded a $580 million follow-on production contract to American defense manufacturer Raytheon, a subsidiary of RTX Corporation, for the Next Generation Jammer Mid-Band (NGJ-MB) system for EA-18G Growler aircraft.
Under the terms of the contract, Raytheon will deliver additional production units of the Next Generation Jammer Mid-Band (NGJ-MB) pod shipsets. This includes systems designated for the Royal Australian Air Force, along with associated spare parts and specialized support equipment.
President of Naval Power at Raytheon, Barbara Borgonovi said, “With this contract, we’ll ensure that our naval aviators in all theaters are better prepared to counter adversary threats and support the Joint Fight.”
Borgonovi higlighted that “Offensive Electronic Attack provides a tremendous combat capability, protecting strike packages, kinetic weapons and high-value airborne assets across a broad range of missions.”
The U.S. Navy uses the NGJ-MB on its EA-18G GROWLER aircraft to counter advanced electronic warfare threats. The NGJ-MB is a cutting-edge electronic attack system designed to deny, disrupt, and degrade enemy technologies, such as communication networks and air defense systems.
The NGJ-MB is a joint development and production initiative between the U.S. Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. This airborne electronic attack system features two pods equipped with active electronically scanned arrays (AESAs) that operate in the mid-band frequency spectrum.
The system is capable of disrupting and suppressing advanced radar systems, communications networks, data links, and non-traditional radio frequency threats.
According to the U.S. Navy, the NGJ-MB system comprises two pods per shipset, as well as small hardware and software modifications to the EA-18G Growler aircraft to enable carriage, communication, and employment.
The Next Generation Jammer (NGJ) represents the next evolution in airborne electronic attack, designed to counter advanced and emerging electronic warfare threats while expanding the mission area. The NGJ is the U.S. Navy’s evolutionary acquisition program that delivers capabilities across three frequency bands: Mid-Band, Low Band, and High Band.
The Mid-Band Expansion enhances the system’s performance by broadening its operational capabilities. According to the RTX statement, this upgrade extends the NGJ-MB system’s frequency range to address a broader spectrum of threats.
Leveraging the latest digital software and Active Electronically Scanned Array technologies, Next Generation Jammer enhances AEA capabilities by targeting enemy air defense and ground communication systems. It offers increased power and jamming effectiveness at greater ranges, along with the flexibility for rapid hardware and software upgrades to address evolving threats.
According to the Raytheon statement, the work under this contract will be carried out at multiple facilities located in Forest, Mississippi; McKinney, Texas; El Segundo, California; and Andover, Massachusetts, with completion expected by 2028.
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