Electronic warfare

Russia is pushing the Army to move faster on electronic warfare

When Army leaders in Europe needed advanced electronic warfare capabilities, they decided they couldn’t wait for years under the current trajectory of the Army’s official program schedule.

Instead, they asked the service to develop a faster solution, one that’s now known as Raven Claw 1 and incorporates facets of the existing program called Electronic Warfare Planning and Management Tool. The latter is a command-and-control planning capability that allows commanders and soldiers to visualize what the effects of electronic warfare will look like in the field on a screen.

By responding to battlefield needs that pop up outside of the traditional acquisition cycle, the Army believes it can accelerate the development of the EWPMT program, and in the process, provide a road map for how the service might improve acquisition.

The change is especially important as the Department of Defense looks to counter Russian forces and their unique threat in the electromagnetic spectrum.

Russia has showcased advanced skills in jamming and targeting within the radio frequency environment leading some top Army leaders to assess the United States is “outgunned by peer and near-peer competitors.