Non-Subscriber Extract
USAF revisits B-52 for standoff electronic attack
By Richard Scott
04 July 2008
The US Air Force (USAF) is looking once again to convert part of its Boeing B-52 Stratofortress strategic bomber force to undertake standoff electronic-attack missions.
The Core Component Jammer (CCJ) programme commenced on 23 June, when Boeing was awarded a USD14.9 million contract by the Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, to develop and mature technologies required to enable airborne electronic attack from long distances.
The contract includes systems engineering studies focusing on potential pod installation on the B-52H aircraft, as the designated demonstration airframe, advancing the technology required for the planned CCJ.
The B-52H is judged to be the only platform in the USAF inventory offering all of the necessary attributes - including responsiveness, range, loiter time, size and power - for standoff jamming while delivering its full complement of weapons.