For the F-35 Lightning II, BAE Systems obtained a $493 million contract modification from Lockheed Martin that will allow the fifth-generation fighter to identify and respond to changing electromagnetic threats in contested battlespaces more swiftly.
AN/ASQ-239, the high-performance EW mission system for the F-35, will get upgraded and highly capable core hardware from BAE Systems under the deal, as well as engineering support services and test infrastructure. Enhanced situational awareness, electromagnetic attack and countermeasure capabilities, and additional sensors and more sophisticated signal processing will be provided by the improved system.
Lisa Aucoin, vice president of F-35 Solutions at BAE Systems, said, “The capabilities we will provide in this contract are foundational and will be leveraged to other platforms to guarantee that all warfighters have the most advanced EW capability at their disposal.” In order for our warfighters to keep pace with emerging threats and protect democracy throughout the world, we need a mission system that is extremely flexible.”
With its resilient architecture, the upgraded electronic warfare system will be able to adapt to the US Department of Defense’s ongoing capability development policy. Allows for rapid hardware upgrades that minimise lifetime and retrofit costs and speedier software updates throughout the worldwide fleet of F-35s thanks to the system’s modular architecture. NIEWTS, the Non-Intrusive Electronic Warfare Test Solution (NIEWTS) fault isolation and diagnostics capacity of the system, significantly minimises maintenance expenses.
