The US Air Force (USAF) recently completed initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E) of the Eagle Passive Active Warning Survivability System (EPAWSS), BAE Systems announced on 2 April 2024.
EPAWSS provides critical electronic warfare (EW) capabilities for the F-15E Strike Eagle and F-15EX Eagle II aircraft.
“EPAWSS was designed for upgradeability and rapid capability insertion,” Amy Nesbitt, EPAWSS programme manager at BAE Systems, was quoted as saying in a company press release. “We’re using agile software development to provide iterative upgrades to fielded EW systems, allowing our customers to defeat future electromagnetic threats.”
EPAWSS provides instantaneous full-spectrum EW capabilities, including radar warning, geolocation, situational awareness and self-protection. The system enables freedom of manoeuvre and deeper penetration into battlespaces protected by modern integrated air defence systems.
“EPAWSS is a leap in technology, improving the lethality and combat capabilities of the F-15E and F-15EX in contested, degraded environments against advanced threats,” said Major Bryant ‘Jager’ Baum, EPAWSS test director for the Air Force Operational Test & Evaluation Center (AFOTEC). “EPAWSS has set the baseline for EW within the fighter community,” he added.
BAE Systems supported AFOTEC in executing EPAWSS IOT&E and is now in the process of producing and fielding the system, improving the F-15’s ability to conduct combat missions. The company is working closely with Boeing and the USAF to enhance the system’s discriminating EW capabilities, including the use of cognitive EW as demonstrated during the ‘Northern Edge 2023’ (NE23) large-force exercise test event, which took place from 8-19 May 2023 in Alaska.
“Our close collaboration with the US Air Force allows us to mature EPAWSS cognitive processing capabilities,” said Chip Mosle, programme director at BAE Systems. “By incrementally testing and fielding cognitive EW solutions to proven systems such as EPAWSS, we are enabling tactical spectrum overmatch against advanced threats that are unpredictable, evolving, and adaptable.”
The NE23 event tested EPAWSS’ ability to rapidly respond to previously unencountered electromagnetic threats. The tests challenged the system’s ability to process in-mission sensor data, create exquisite techniques, and optimise waveforms in real time. Furthermore, the NE23 environment challenged the system to execute the tasks in a dense, unpredictable electromagnetic spectrum at a theatre exercise level.
BAE Systems executes the EPAWSS programme at its facilities in Nashua, New Hampshire, and Austin, Texas, actively producing EPAWSS hardware in support of F-15EX new-aircraft production and F-15E aircraft fleet modifications.
