Navy Wants To Send 25 EA-18G Growlers To The Boneyard
The puzzling move to shutter the EA-18G expeditionary squadrons that only fly from land may point to new capabilities waiting in the wings.
BY
JAMES DEBOER
,
TYLER ROGOWAY
APR 25, 2022 3:21 PM
EA-18 Expeditionary Squadron Retirement
Aviation_Intel
Since its first deployment in 2009, the EA-18G Growler has become the premier airborne electronic attack platform in the United States military. So it came as a surprise to many when the U.S. Navy published a document highlighting various aspects of its Fiscal Year 2023 budget proposal and it called for the decommissioning of all five of the non-carrier-based Growler squadrons, which have a total of 25 aircraft.
It reads, in part, as follows:
Decommission Five Active Component Expeditionary Electronic Attack Squadrons (VAQs). Divests of all non-carrier-based EA-18G Growler support of joint force requirements for tactical airborne electronic attack (AEA) capability and capacity. Divestment involves decommissioning five Growler squadrons, collectively consisting of 25 airframes and approximately 1,020 associated officer and enlisted billets. Military end strength will be reduced by half in FY 2024 and fully in FY 2025. Associated aircraft will be placed in long-term preservation at the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG). Half of the aircraft will be inducted in FY 2024 and the remainder in FY 2025. (FY 2023: $0.0M/ FYDP: -$807.8M)
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/navy-wants-to-send-25-ea-18g-growlers-to-the-boneyard
