Northrop Grumman has secured a contract to advance the integration of AN/ALQ-257 Integrated Viper Electronic Warfare Suite (IVEWS) onto the US Air Force’s (USAF) F-16 aircraft.
The company is continuing to prepare for a series of developmental tests and full hardware and software verification tests on the IVEWS.
The tests will validate and advance the integration of the new electronic warfare suite on the USAF’s F-16 fighter aircraft.
Under the latest contract, Northrop Grumman will also develop the infrastructure required for moving the IVEWS system for production once the tests are completed.
Northrop Grumman navigation, targeting and survivability vice-president James Conroy said: “We continue the process of putting IVEWS through a rigorous testing programme to ensure that it will be ready to protect warfighters.
“As advanced radiofrequency threats proliferate, the capabilities IVEWS will provide are critical for the fourth-generation fighter fleet.”
Northrop Grumman also tested the IVEWS system and AN/APG-83 SABR radar to demonstrate its interoperability against several ground-based and airborne threats.
These tests were conducted at the Northern Lightning joint exercise held last year.
The AN/ALQ-257 IVEWS features an open-systems, ultra-wideband architecture, which provides the required bandwidth instantly to conquer a wide range of new threats.
The warfare suite comes under a mature product line of electronic warfare capabilities, which can also be adapted virtually to any platform.
Once integrated into the USAF’s F-16 aircraft, the electronic warfare suite will provide protection to the airmen while conducting missions in contested conditions.
