U.S. unprepared to protect RF emitters like radio and radar from enemy electronic warfare (EW) jammers
OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. – U.S. troops have forgotten basic lessons of electronic warfare (EW), and they’re not being forced to relearn them because even major training exercises are unrealistically easy, military and civilian experts warn. Breaking Defense reports. Continue reading original article
The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:
6 Nov. 2019 -- Even when EW specialists are allowed to disrupt a unit’s RF and microwave emitters like radios and radar, often to paralyzing effect, they’re typically told to knock it off so training can continue as normal.
“We’ve got to stop wishing it away,” said Lt. Col. Matthew Poole, a Marine working at U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM) at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb. “We’ve got to stop willfully ignoring the fact that the bad guys have jammers too.”
During exercises, troops keep their cell phones on, giving away their precise location. Units consistently forget such basics as having backup plans in case their primary communications get jammed, and even when someone does switch to the backup channels, the people they need to talk to often forget to listen to them.
John Keller, chief editor
Military & Aerospace Electronics
