Boeing has completed delivery of the U.S. Navy’s first aircraft acquired through the F/A-18E/F and EA-18G Multi-Year Procurement (MYP) III contract, ahead of schedule.
Aircraft G-57, an EA-18G Growler, was the first of 148 F/A-18E/Fs and EA-18Gs that the Navy will purchase through the contract. The aircraft was delivered to the Navy on Jan. 26 and arrived at its home base at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island on Jan. 30.
On Sept. 28, 2010, the Navy awarded Boeing the MYP III contract for delivery of 66 F/A-18E/Fs and 58 EA-18Gs, to be purchased through 2013. The Navy has since expanded the contract with the addition of 24 F/A-18E/Fs. The Navy has the option to procure up to 194 F/A-18E/Fs and EA-18Gs under the MYP III contract terms.
“This program continues to successfully draw on efficiencies from across Boeing to reduce cost, while increasing capability for the men and women who serve this nation around the globe,” said Mike Gibbons, Boeing F/A-18 and EA-18 Programs vice president. “Today’s new Super Hornets provide unequaled air dominance and precision strike capability for the U.S. Navy carrier fleet. At the same time, the EA-18G continues to expand its dominance as the world’s premier airborne electronic attack aircraft, as demonstrated by its recent successes supporting operations in Libya. The Super Hornet and Growler give the U.S. Navy a significant capability for a broad spectrum of anti-access, area-denial missions.”
Procuring aircraft through the first two multi-year contracts generated $1.7 billion in savings for the Navy. The MYP III contract is projected to generate more than $605 million in savings, for total savings of more than $2.3 billion across the three F/A-18E/F and EA-18G contracts.
The Boeing EA-18G Growler is the only air combat platform that delivers full-spectrum airborne electronic attack capability along with the targeting and self-defense capabilities derived from the F/A-18E/F Block II Super Hornet.
NAS Whidbey is slated to replace all of its EA-6B Prowler aircraft with the new Growler. That transition is expected to be complete by 2016. There is one training squadron in place — Electronic Attack Squadron 129 — that has already seen the successful transition of several squadrons from the Prowler to the Growler. When the transition is complete, NAS Whidbey will be home to 114 of the new aircraft.
A derivative of the two-seat F/A-18F Block II, the EA-18G’s highly flexible design enables warfighters to operate either from the deck of an aircraft carrier or from land-based airfields. The EA-18G was a critical platform employed during NATO operations in Libya in support of Operation Odyssey Dawn in 2011. The EA-18G logged more than 7,000 combat flight hours supporting operations in Libya.
