Scalable, Adaptable, Future-Ready EW Defense and Attack Suite
Threat rings are expanding worldwide and electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) superiority is being challenged, diminishing airpower’s key combat advantage. The evolution of our adversaries’ threats drives the need for revolutionary technologies that can maintain the competitive advantage for years to come, advance unimpeded maneuverability, and win the fight for the future.
BAE Systems meets those technological demands, and takes them further, with our scalable and adaptable Storm EW suite.
Derived from advanced electronic warfare (EW) system programs, the Storm EW suite offers end-to-end capabilities in a platform-agnostic system that can be integrated into any new or existing aircraft platform. Our Storm EW suite offers 360-degree ultra-wideband capability. Using a common core architecture, we leverage funded and fielded capabilities in this scalable modular suite to maximize capacity and accelerate delivery and interoperability for our combatant commanders, partners, and allies.
Why turn to BAE Systems for Storm EW?
BAE Systems provides full-spectrum electronic warfare technologies that take on and conquer current and future threats, and our Storm EW suite makes it easy to add over-the-horizon EW capabilities at a fraction of the cost of a dedicated EW system.
Other top reasons include:
BAE Systems is the global leader in next-generation EW systems.
- We are the sole provider of EW systems for 5th generation and other next-generation military aircraft, including the F-15EX program using our Eagle Passive Active Warning Survivability System (EPAWSS), and the F-35 program’s Block 4 upgrade.
- 95% of U.S. military rotary-wing aircraft (helicopters) depend on our EW systems.
- Integrated on 120+ airborne systems.
- We provide our EW systems to more than 65 different countries worldwide.
We have 60+ years of experience developing electronic warfare systems for military, intelligence, and head-of-state aircraft.
- The Electronic Combat Solutions (ECS) team at BAE Systems is unsurpassed worldwide at exploiting the full electromagnetic spectrum to protect combat aircraft, increase lethality and survivability, and support the mission.
- For decades, we partnered with other aerospace and defense sector leaders, including Boeing, Lockheed Martin, L3Harris, and others, to advance electronic warfare, communications, Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (C4ISR), and other technologies that leverage the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) more effectively to protect U.S. warfighters and our allies.
At every stage of the EW life cycle, BAE Systems delivers.
- Development. Our research and development teams create full-spectrum Extreme EW 2.0 (EWX) suites proven to outperform competitors, with next-generation defensive and offensive EW capabilities, all designed for rapid technology upgrades that stay ahead of emerging threats.
- Production. Customers can count on a rapid fielding advantage from the Storm EW suite thanks to a hot production capability at our state-of-the-art electronic warfare integrated manufacturing center and three microwave module factories.
- Sustainment. BAE Systems’ performance-based logistics (PBL) approach to sustainment of EW systems gives our customers a lower total life-cycle cost than other systems offer, which can also extend the effective useful lifespan of our systems.
Our expertise leads the world in EW solutions across every domain.
- The Storm EW suite is outfitted for aircraft, but ready to detect, identify, track, and attack modern day threats from all domains – air, land, sea, space, and cyber. They can do that because BAE Systems dominates the electromagnetic spectrum with electro-optical (EO), infrared (IR), radio frequency (RF) and cyber effects products, systems, and expertise like no one else worldwide.
What are spectrum warfare suites?
Custom EW systems have proven their value in battle zones many times over with increased mission effectiveness and survivability, but their development, implementation, and sustainment costs for individual aircraft platforms can limit their adoption, leaving some fleet aircraft without EW protections and capabilities. This is particularly true for legacy platforms and those with rare combat exposure. Spectrum warfare suites were developed to provide an adaptable, platform-agnostic approach that makes adding advanced EW defense and attack capabilities to any appropriate aircraft significantly more affordable, both initially and long-term, as well as making them easier to field rapidly.
However, spectrum warfare suites are not all alike. Some manufacturers employ a multi-function approach to EW module design by packaging core EW functions in modular units that provide EW plus several other capabilities for a multi-purpose, all-in-one value proposition. The downside of that approach is that when some of those other functions are engaged, the EW capabilities can react more slowly than they should – much like a laptop not opening a document until it finishes executing a non-related command – which threatens survivability. Speed is vital in electronic warfare, especially when operating in hostile environments, so BAE Systems specializes in building only dedicated spectrum warfare suites to assure the lightning-fast action/reaction times necessary to protect every aircraft, every crew member, and every mission.
Why are spectrum warfare suites important?
As adversaries become more sophisticated in electronic warfare, the need to detect them, block or misdirect their attacks, and counterattack anywhere and everywhere – before kinetic battles begin – has become critical. The real-world threat status is now so critical that armed forces today need to field as many future-forward, EW-capable combat aircraft as soon as possible. Anything less creates a serious risk to survivability, mission effectiveness, and allied defensive posture. Spectrum warfare suites have the adaptable, platform-agnostic architecture to provide EW capabilities for both new and legacy aircraft, with faster installation and at significantly lower cost than custom EW system designs allow.
In fact, spectrum warfare suites are so important and in demand right now that one of the primary obstacles to their deployment lies in manufacturers’ production capacity. That’s why, on top of choosing a suite design with dedicated EW capabilities, it’s also important to choose a manufacturing partner that has the production resources and expertise to get these systems built and into aircraft quickly. BAE Systems has significant production speed and capacity with our three state-of-the-art microwave factories, a recently expanded advanced composites manufacturing facility, and an incredible electronic warfare Integrated Manufacturing Center (EWIMC). When our customers are ready to make the leap ahead, we are right there to make it happen.
Who uses spectrum warfare suites?
Military and intelligence organizations of most modern, industrialized nations worldwide – either directly or through their allies – use EW systems and support services for uninterrupted threat detection, identification, tracking, and other defensive purposes, as well as offensive and protective capabilities. Primary developers and users of active EW systems and equipment include Canada, China, Finland, France, Germany, India, Israel, Japan, North Korea, Poland, Russia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The number of countries currently adding spectrum warfare suites to their fleets is largely confidential, but is growing fast because of how easy and affordable they enable dramatic upgrades and expanded EW capabilities in whole fleets of older, active fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft and new platforms. Their proven capabilities, agility, platform adaptability, and relative affordability have quickly put EW spectrum warfare suites, especially Storm EW, high on the acquisitions lists of nations worldwide.
What platforms benefit from the Storm EW suite?
The Storm EW suite is platform-agnostic, meaning it will work on any available aircraft platform. That said, it is designed and outfitted for Air Force and Navy combat aircraft, and is adaptable for intelligence, head-of-state, and mission-support aircraft. It also is being tested for classified aircraft and experimental platforms, like the Army Future Vertical Lift program, various Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), space and landing craft, and more. Storm EW suite’s modularity, scalable flexibility, and rapid reprogramability all reinforce continued growth in the number of platforms that will use the system.
Fixed-wing aircraft on which Storm EW suites are being tested or fielded currently include:
- F-15 (E Strike Eagle, EX Eagle II)
- F-35 A/B Lightning II
- And several classified platforms.
Deployable today:
- Storm EW suite is a scalable, flexible, leveraged hardware solution available to upgrade existing and next-generation platforms.
- Approved for export to our allies and partners.
- Proven hardware agility and polarization flexibility counters modern threats.
- Flight-tested, our advanced EW demonstrated discriminating techniques across surface and airborne threats.
- Singular hardware solution across all platforms.
- Upgradable capability via software and swappable subcomponent modules minimizes logistics footprint.
- Production capability in place, producing advanced EW at our state-of-the-art EW integrated manufacturing center and three microwave factories.
- Common core architecture provides significant total lifecycle cost benefits.
Accelerating the future of EW
Winning the battlespace depends on controlling the skies, and the future of air power depends on unrelenting electromagnetic dominance. That’s why BAE Systems proactively transformed our business model to develop technologies that outpace threats and own the electromagnetic spectrum and the battlespace – whenever and wherever necessary. We recently invested more than $150 million in our production facilities, including three state-of the-art microwave manufacturing factories, and are committed to delivering future-focused performance and unequaled quality to our customers, on time and on budget. We have the production capacity in place right now, with available growth to meet increasing demand. BAE Systems’ experience, manufacturing capabilities, and global support network all substantially accelerate the fielding of our systems as they drive down total Life-cycle costs for our customers, resulting in the most compelling EW portfolio investment option available.
Airborne Electronic Warfare (AEW) • Cyber Effects • Digital Data Transformation • Electronic Signature • Electronic Surveillance • Electronic Warfare (EW) • Electronic Warfare C4ISR • Electronic Warfare Officer • Electronic Warfare Specialist • Electronic Warfare Operational Support (EWOS) • Infrared (IR) and Radio Frequency (RF) Self-Protection • Infrared (IR) Threat Analysis Testing • Multi-Domain Information Warfare • Multispectral, RF/Threat Management • Northern Edge 2023 (NE23) • Off-Board and On-Board Self-Protection • Sustainment and Performance Based Logistics (PBL) • Threat Analysis and Response • Threat Detection, Suppression and Neutralization • Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) • United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM)
Learn more. Download our Storm EW™ data sheet or contact our Electronic Systems business development representative to arrange a meeting.