Raytheon repackage Next Gen Jammer for land and sea - Army Technology
AI Analysis
Raytheon is adapting its airborne Next Generation Jammer (NGJ) into a standalone surface-based electronic attack system (RSEAS) to protect land and sea assets from UAS and missiles. The 6×6 foot unit, controlled from a laptop and leveraging mature NGJ technology already fielded on EA-18G Growlers, is expected to be demonstrated in Q3 2026.
Key Takeaways
- Raytheon Surface Electronic Attack System (RSEAS) repackages the NGJ from EA-18G Growler aircraft into a standalone 6×6 foot unit for land and maritime use.
- The system is designed for non-kinetic electronic attack against UAS, missiles, and other threats, utilizing high-powered AESA radars and commercial off-the-shelf equipment.
- A demonstration is planned for Q3 2026; the current demonstrator is a lab-based, cart-mounted unit controlled from a laptop.
- The underlying NGJ technology is operationally mature, having been deployed for over a year on U.S. Navy Growlers and recently delivered to the Royal Australian Air Force.
- Raytheon is engaged in talks with unspecified potential customers but has not yet initiated formal international export efforts.
Why It Matters
The saturation of UAS on modern battlefields—exemplified in Ukraine and the Gulf—has created an urgent requirement for mobile, non-kinetic ground-based defenses that do not rely on scarce dedicated electronic warfare aircraft. RSEAS offers a rapidly fieldable, standalone jamming capability that could directly enhance base and maritime air defense posture using already-proven technology.
Raytheon repackage Next Gen Jammer for land and sea - Army Technology
Pictured is a representation of the non-kinetic effects of the Raytheon Surface Electronic Attack system. Credit: Raytheon.
- The RTX business will soon introduce the Raytheon Surface Electronic Attack System
- This concept repackages the Next Generation Jammer (NGJ), used on Growler aircraft, to protect land and sea assets
- Not yet in the field, Raytheon executive Chuck Angus said the company will likely demonstrate the weapon system in Q3 2026
Raytheon plans to adapt its airborne NGJ pods to protect land and sea based assets.
The saturation of uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) offer the launcher unprecedented reach of targets, often demonstrated with lethal effect in Ukraine and the Gulf. As the threat continues to grow, Raytheon’s electronic attack capability could be used to down them.
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The Raytheon Surface Electronic Attack System (RSEAS), as the modified system is known, is already a “very mature system” insists Chuck Angus, a business development executive for Raytheon. The NGJ has already been in service for over a year on US Navy EA-18G Growler aircraft.
In fact, Growlers were deployed in the Middle East over the past two months during Operation Epic Fury. The Navy tasked the fleet to suppress Iranian air defence systems, which Army Technology assessed in depth at the outset of the conflict.
Likewise, the Royal Australian Air Force – an NGJ production partner and Growler operator – has officially received its first pods today (20 April), according to the prime. The company will also provide on-site deployment and maintenance support in Australia.
American Growler launches from the flight deck USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) in support of Op. Epic Fury at an undisclosed location, 3 March 2026. Credit: DVIDS.
Raytheon Surface Electronic Attack System
But now, the 6×6 foot RSEAS unit may be used to protect surface assets such as outposts or ships at sea. It does not require a dedicated electronic warfare aircraft like a Growler; the system is a standalone electronic attack unit.
“Whether it’s against weapons, as in missiles or drones, it’s mobile, it’s transportable, and it uses very little [else] other than the high powered AESA radars and some [commercial off-the-shelf] equipment,” Angus envisaged.
“We currently have a demonstrator that is in our lab that sits on a cart with the right power and cooling,” he continued, and all this is controlled from a laptop.
Raytheon is in talks with unspecified potential customers who, Angus said, are particularly interested in the concept. He later noted that Raytheon has not explored international export opportunities at present.
When asked whether Raytheon is concerned about Europe’s newfound policy of strategic autonomy, largely due to political disrust with