An RAAF EA-18G Growler with two ALQ-249 NGJ-MB pods and one ALQ-99 TJS pod at RAAF Williamtown on 12 May. Photo: Stephen Brown.
US defence giant Raytheon has confirmed it has delivered the first shipsets of AN/ALQ-249(V1) next-generation jammer mid-band (NGJ-MB) pods to the Royal Australian Air Force.
The RAAF has been testing the new pods at the US Navy’s China Lake test range in California for a couple of years, and it is believed initial deliveries to the RAAF actually commenced in late 2025.
An RAAF Boeing EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft was first spotted with NGJ-MBs in Australian skies near its home base of RAAF Amberley in December 2025.
In early May 2026, RAAF EA-18Gs were photographed with NGJ-MB pods at RAAF Williamtown, indicating the possible first use of the system in Exercise Diamond Spear as part of this year’s RAAF Air Warfare Instructor’s Course (AWIC).
Australia has operated 12 EA-18Gs since 2017, and the aircraft are currently being upgraded with new core processors, cockpit displays, and other enhancements in parallel with the US Navy’s Block II upgrade program.
In US Navy service, the NGJ-MB entered service in late 2024, and successfully achieved an initial operational capability (IOC) in January 2025. The new systems saw their first operational use on EA-18Gs aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln against Houthi targets in the Gulf of Aden in February 2025.
“Next-generation jammer mid-band improves our fleet’s warfighting advantage in the electromagnetic spectrum,” the US Navy’s Program Executive Officer for Tactical Aircraft Programs, Rear Admiral John Lemmon said when IOC was achieved.
“This system provides enhanced capabilities to deny, distract and disorient adversaries’ radars, protecting our naval aviators and allowing them to carry out their missions in contested airspace.”
The NGJ-MB pods are a similar size and profile as an external fuel tank, and are carried on the Growler’s mid-wing pylons. Photo: Stephen Brown.
Australia’s NGJ-MB pods are being acquired through a cooperative development program between the US Navy and the RAAF, for which Raytheon was selected in 2017.
Designed to replace the Vietnam-era AN/ALQ-99 Tactical Jamming System (TJS) pods on the EA-18G – of which Australia and the US Navy are the only operators – the NGJ provides a generational change in the ability to provide stand-off electronic disruption or jamming of radar, communications, and other systems.
The NGJ uses digital software, electronically scanned arrays, and higher power settings to provide advanced airborne electronic attack capabilities at longer ranges. Its digital architecture also allows for rapid hardware and software updates to counter evolving threats.
The NGJ-MB will be followed by the AN/ALQ-249(V2) NGJ low-band (LB) which is currently under development by L3Harris, and after that, the (V3) high-band (HB) for which a contractor has not yet been selected.
Once all three versions have entered service, it is anticipated Growlers will carry a MB and HB pod on each wing, and the LB pod on the fuselage centreline pylon to provide jamming support across the electronic spectrum.
Raytheon’s president of Naval Power Barbara Borgonovi said the delivery marked a significant milestone in the company’s collaborative efforts with the US Navy and RAAF on NGJ.
“This advanced technology will greatly enhance RAAF’s electronic warfare capabilities, safeguarding vital assets on its aircraft and more effectively neutralising adversary technologies across a wide range of missions.”
