Issue Brief #5
April 9, 2001

Is the Electronic Warfare Market Going Overseas?

Recently, reports have indicated that foreign countries are making considerable advances in electronic warfare (EW) technology and capabilities in order to exploit this asymmetric warfare.  This should cause major concern within the United States defense community.  It signals that the U.S. may risk losing its edge in EW superiority.  If the Department of Defense (DoD) does not actively address EW shortfalls today and support next generation EW technology for tomorrow, the U.S. will face many challenges in maintaining its future war fighting advantage.

Advancements in electronic warfare capabilities by foreign countries have several ramifications for our armed forces and defense community.  A recent article in Aviation Week and Space Technology quoted an Air Force official as saying “electronic fratricide” could occur if advanced foreign EW systems are not compatible or interoperable with U.S. EW systems.  Without adequate upgrades, our and our allies’ ability to defeat enemy air defense systems would be impaired.  If DoD does not put forth the effort to stay current with advancing EW technology and capabilities, it risks placing our men and women in uniform in harm’s way.  

Further, without a firm commitment by DoD to support EW programs, our defense infrastructure could suffer.  Can we expect U.S. defense industries to bear the cost of “keeping up” without strong support by DoD and a healthy domestic market?  If this trend continues, more and more countries may look elsewhere as the technology gap widens.  To be sure, U.S. defense companies are today developing some of the most advanced technology in EW, but some of this technology is not installed in U.S. platforms.  For example, the F-16 Block 60 being sold to the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) has technology that DoD has not installed in F-16s currently used in the U.S. fleet.  Should we be selling foreign countries better technology than we are willing to give our armed forces?  Clearly not.

What needs to be done to stem this trend?  Electronic warfare has traditionally lived off of congressional plus-ups through the appropriations process.  DoD must improve its effort to fund critical EW programs in its initial budget request.  Further, establishing a coordinated cross-service strategy for electronic warfare is important for mapping out what future EW capabilities need to be developed and ensuring that there is a steady stream of funding for EW programs for future years.  Foreign competition is healthy and can greatly improve our EW capabilities, but if we are not committed to keeping up with the foreign market, we will learn too late – and we will pay for it in the lives of our service men and women and the security of our nation.

John R. Thune
Member of Congress  

Electronic Warfare Working Group

Congressman Joe Pitts, Founder and Co-Chairman

420 Cannon House Office Building

Washington, DC 20515

202 225-2411 phone    202 225-2013 fax