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[global times special correspondent chen yang] the invisible control of the electromagnetic battlefield is unprecedentedly important in the modern battlefield. in order to strengthen its leading position in this field, the pentagon continues to introduce new equipment. the british "jane's defense weekly" website revealed on september 2 that the us air force's new generation of electronic warfare aircraft ea-37b "calling compass" has been officially delivered. this is a new weapon tailored by the us air force for the era of great power competition.

a new generation of “call compass”

it is reported that the u.s. air force air combat command has received the first ea-37b electronic warfare aircraft for pilot training. the special aircraft, numbered 19-5591, was delivered at davis-monthan air force base on august 23. the u.s. air force stated in a press release: "the aircraft maintains the military advantage of the joint force on the electromagnetic battlefield and obtains more lethal capabilities through modern electronic attack means to block competitors' tactical networks and information systems. the aircraft will block, weaken and destroy enemy communications, information processing, navigation, radar systems and radios, and use offensive electronic attack capabilities to support u.s. and military coalition tactical air, surface and special operations forces."

the u.s. air force's new generation of electronic warfare aircraft ea-37b "calling compass"

according to reports, the main electronic warfare aircraft in service of the us air force is the ec-130h "calling compass" modified from the c-130 transport aircraft platform, which is managed by the 41st and 43rd electronic warfare squadrons of the 55th electronic warfare group of the us air force stationed at davis-monthan air force base. however, since the ec-130h has been in service since the early 1980s, it has been seriously aged, and 9 of the 14 active aircraft have been retired. therefore, the us air force has launched a new generation of ea-37b electronic warfare aircraft through substantial modifications based on the gulfstream g550 business jet, and also inherited the code name of "calling compass".

the us air force times said that the main electronic equipment of the ea-37b was transplanted from the ec-130h. at the same time, compared with the ec-130h, it has a higher flight speed and stronger endurance, but is much smaller in size and weight, and its ceiling height has been increased by more than 50%, making this new generation of us air force electronic warfare aircraft more survivable on the battlefield. according to the us air force's plan, at least 10 ea-37b electronic warfare aircraft will be purchased in the future.

the u.s. air force's force multiplier

according to reports, the u.s. military has always attached great importance to dedicated electronic warfare aircraft. the u.s. air force has previously developed the ef-111a "raven" electronic attack aircraft and the ec-130h electronic warfare aircraft, while the u.s. navy is equipped with two generations of electronic attack aircraft, the ea-6b "prowler" and the ea-18g "growler". from a functional point of view, the ef-111a, ea-6b and ea-18g are all modified from fighters or attack aircraft, carrying only two pilots, so they are more inclined to perform tactical attack missions, mainly used to accompany attack aircraft groups, use powerful airborne electronic equipment to suppress and interfere with the opponent's radar, or launch anti-radiation weapons to implement "hard kills".

in contrast, the ec-130h and ea-37b can carry more crew members and have larger internal space, which can accommodate more complex and powerful large radar antennas and electronic equipment, so they are more inclined to large-scale electronic suppression, monitoring and even cyber attack missions. according to the official introduction of the us air force, "calling compass" has the ability to deny or disrupt the radio communication systems and sensors of combat opponents. its combat targets are enemy air defense systems, voice/data communication links, low-frequency early warning and target search air defense radars, and radio frequency trigger signals of improvised explosive devices.

generally speaking, the call compass can carry a mission group of about ten people, with an electronic warfare officer in charge of commanding the entire electronic warfare mission. the mission crew manager is an experienced cryptographer and language expert who is responsible for monitoring and prioritizing the search for enemy communications. the weapon system operator is an electronic warfare officer responsible for operating the jammer, the intercept operator's task is to search for pulse signals, and the onboard maintenance technician is responsible for maintaining the normal operation of the mission system on the platform and communicating with the flight engineer in the cockpit. the analysis operator completes the tasks assigned by the mission crew manager and searches and listens to enemy communications according to the mission priority list. there are also reports that the high-power active phased array radar equipped with the ea-37b also has electromagnetic attack capabilities, which can emit electromagnetic energy beams to damage electronic equipment in enemy aircraft, missiles and other systems.

what is more noteworthy is that major general burke wilson, then commander of the 24th air force of the united states air force, who was responsible for cyber attack operations, mentioned when introducing the ec-130h, "we have conducted a series of demonstration tests and were able to contact and control network targets from the air. the most obvious intersection between electronic warfare and cyberspace operations is that combat forces invade enemy networks by transmitting computer codes. in such operations, even if the enemy network is closed (not connected to the internet), we can still send data packets through wireless networks." due to the obvious inheritance relationship between ea-37b and ec-130h, the outside world generally believes that the former also has a similar ability to use wireless networks to invade opponent electronic equipment.

tailor-made for great power competition

it is reported that all ec-130hs and ea-37bs are currently equipped with the 55th electronic warfare group of the united states. the 41st and 43rd squadrons under the group are respectively aimed at different regions of the world. the 41st squadron mainly has language experts in spanish, persian and arabic, and generally provides support to the us southern command and central command; while the 43rd squadron mainly has language experts in serbo-croatian, russian, chinese and korean, and is responsible for providing support to the european command and the indo-pacific command.

according to the notification of the us air force, the first ea-37b delivered is currently allocated to the 43rd electronic warfare squadron on a priority basis, and its target is self-evident.

it is worth mentioning that the ea-37b also has strong collaborative combat capabilities. it can share information and coordinate tactics in real time with various stealth fighters such as the f-35, f-22, and b-21, becoming a capable general for the us air force's stealth fleet assault operations.