Upgraded Prowler transforming warfare

[Steve Wilkins]

I thought this press release was pretty interesting. It looks like full spectrum dominance as outlined in Joint Vision 2020 and VADM Cebrowski's vision of network centric warfare are coming together to fruition in this project.

By Chuck Wagner
PEO Tactical Aircraft public affairs

With Advanced Capabilities III upgrades, the Navy’s EA-6B Prowler is transforming the traditional combat role for electronic warfare aircraft.

No longer is the Prowler predominantly a search-and-destroy weapon against enemy air defenses. The ICAP III Prowler has demonstrated on two recent squadron deployments that it can serve as a command-and-control node in the Navy’s quickly expanding universe of network-centric warfare. Perhaps most transformational is the Prowler’s new power to directly support troops on the ground by dominating a new sphere of unconventional warfare – the airwaves.

“We still fill the traditional role. That hasn’t changed, except that we can fill that role better than in the past,” said Capt. Kenneth Smolana, manager for the Navy’s EA-6B program (PMA 234) at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. “But there is a huge paradigm shift away from simply controlling air defenses. We can now support troops on the ground by better providing radio frequency domination.”

Dominating these bandwidths – with what Smolana calls “information supremacy” - provides an inestimable advantage to U.S. and friendly ground troops. Information supremacy determines whose forces can communicate using electronic technology and which must fight on mute. The latter can be crippling in modern combat where command decisions can be calculated in seconds.

From: http://pao.navair.navy.mil/press_re...release_view&Press_release_id=3543&site_id=15

My favorite is this line, however.

I think the biggest compliment in the world is the Junior Officers in VAQ-139 said they would give up their daily naps on the ship before they would give up ICAP III.

I'm not so sure about that one. Sounds like leadership fudging reality a bit.

For the unitiated on "network centric warfare" and "full spectrum dominance" here is the link to VADM Cebrowski's Proceeding article as well as the link to the Joint Vision 2020 doc.

Network Centric Warfare: It's Origins and Future
Joint Vision 2020

 

[Brett327]

Although I have not used ICAP III operationally, it is an amazing advance in EW/EA. This is the heart of what's going into the G model. As far as providing "radio frequency domination," this is something we've done for years, but only since OEF/GWOT has it been used in the way it is today - supporting troops on the ground. Again, exciting times for the EA community.

Brett

 

[Fly Navy]

Very cool. Information warfare... think they would have thought of this 200 years ago?

 

[raptor10]

What, like shooting messengers or poisoning pigeons?

 

[Fly Navy]

What, like shooting messengers or poisoning pigeons?

More like MIDS, Link, etc.

 

[raptor10]

Yeah, they'd have a brain hemmorage on sight.