The first aircraft configured like the EA-18G took off March 30 from Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Md. marking a milestone in the testing of the Navy’s new electronic warfare jet -- the Growler. Naval Air Test Squadron 23 test pilots Lt. Matt “Tod” Doyle and Lt. Cmdr. William “Puffy” McCombs completed the first flight.

“This is a big deal because it’s the first time that we’ve actually flown a Super Hornet with the ALQ-218 pods on the wingtips,” said Cmdr. Jaime “Coach” Engdahl, EA-18G Department Head. “Before we get the two pre-production EA-18Gs, we’re outfitting Super Hornets with all of the external configurations and going out there to do flying qualities, loads and flutter testing.”

The airframe is essentially the same between the Super Hornet and Growler, Engdahl said, so all the testing not involving EA 18G-unique mission systems can be performed before VX-23 receives the first two EA-18G test aircraft. VX-23 is scheduled to get the first pre-production test vehicle, called EA-1, in October, and the second about a month later. Both are currently on Boeing’s production line in St. Louis. Until then, the F/A-18 project team has dedicated three Super Hornets, configured as Growlers, to the test program. One will be used to test for flying qualities, one for flutter testing and one for loads testing. The current wingtip pods are models used to copy the aerodynamics and mass properties of the ALQ-218.

The ALQ-218 electronic warfare receiver is from the EA-6B’s Improved Capability III (ICAP III) Airborne Electronic Attack suite.

“Initially we have a 47-flight, 70-hour flying qualities program to complete on aircraft 120,” Engdahl said. “This week we will begin a 106-flight flutter program with aircraft 101, and in mid-April we also begin loads testing.”

The test team is excited to finally have the EA-18G airborne, Engdahl said, it marks the full start of a 350-flight, 20-month aeromechanical test program. The team plans to fly about 10 flights a month with each of the aircraft.

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U.S. Navy photo
Pilots with Naval Air Test Squadron 23 fly a Super Hornet configured with Growler wingtip pods to test the aeromechanical performance of the EA-18G before the first test aircraft arrives later this year from Boeing production lines in St. Louis.