The US armed forces learned the value of tactical jamming over North Vietnam, where radar-guided missiles and guns took a heavy toll. The Navy’s answer was the EA-6B Prowler, a stretched A-6 Intruder with a pilot and three electronic countermeasures officers, which served from the early 1970s through Grenada, Libya, the Gulf War, Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq. When the US Air Force retired its EF-111A Ravens in the late 1990s, the Prowler became the only dedicated tactical jammer in the US inventory, flown by Navy and Marine Corps squadrons on behalf of all the services.

By the early 2000s the Prowlers were old, slow and expensive to keep flying. Boeing had flight-tested a Super Hornet carrying ALQ-99 pods in the early 2000s, and in December 2003 the Navy chose that route. The Growler reused the jamming pods and much of the Prowler’s improved electronics in a fast, modern airframe, with a crew of two instead of four thanks to automation. The Navy flew its last Prowler mission in 2015 and the Marine Corps followed in 2019.

Australia already flew F/A-18F Super Hornets when it decided to convert part of its order to Growler standard and then to buy a dedicated fleet. It ordered 12 EA-18Gs, which the RAAF now operates with No. 6 Squadron at RAAF Base Amberley in Queensland. The aircraft arrived in Australia in 2017 and reached initial operating capability in April 2019. Australia is the only country outside the United States to fly the type, and its Growlers are cooperatively supported with the US Navy.

Australian Growlers are equipped much like US Navy aircraft, but the RAAF added changes based on US experience over Libya, including the ability to carry a targeting pod for identifying targets visually, according to USNI News. In January 2018 one Australian Growler was written off after a fire at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada; the US State Department approved the sale of a replacement in 2021.

The Growler’s front cockpit is essentially a Super Hornet’s, with the pilot flying the aircraft and managing weapons. The rear seat belongs to the electronic warfare officer (EWO), who manages the receivers, jammers and anti-radiation missiles through large touch displays. Much of what took three officers in the Prowler is automated: the system can identify threats and propose jamming responses, leaving the EWO to make decisions rather than tune equipment.

To avoid confusion with the Prowler over the radio, US crews used the callsign-style nickname Grizzly for the aircraft during the transition years. Upgrades continue: the Growler Block II programme is developing improved receivers and avionics, and the Next Generation Jammer is being introduced in mid-band and low-band versions to cover more of the spectrum. The aircraft also has a growing role in networked operations, passing the location of enemy emitters to other aircraft and ships.

• Removed: the M61 cannon, to make room for electronics.
• Wingtips: AN/ALQ-218 receiver pods replace the missile rails.
• Jammers: up to three AN/ALQ-99 pods, now being replaced by AN/ALQ-249 Next Generation Jammer pods.
• Communications: AN/ALQ-227 communications countermeasures and an interference cancellation system.
• Weapons: AGM-88 HARM and AARGM, AIM-120 AMRAAM.
• RAAF additions: targeting pod capability and national modifications.

One of the strongest arguments for the Growler was commonality. It shares engines, most of its structure, training and spare parts with the Super Hornets that fill US carrier decks, which cuts support costs compared with a separate fleet of ageing Prowlers. GlobalSecurity, citing an older Navy estimate, put its operating cost at about US$7,400 per hour against about US$17,000 for the EA-6B.

Those figures are narrow measures. Electronic warfare equipment is expensive to maintain and upgrade, and the Next Generation Jammer adds significant cost. The estimate given in the table is therefore a hedged range rather than an official figure.