Interested in joining the Defence Sector? Electronic Warfare 101

Electronic Warfare (EW) is a critical component of modern military operations, enabling forces to detect, locate, and protect against a wide range of threats. Recently, Elbit Systems announced a new contract to supply EW self-protection suites for a fighter aircraft being delivered to a NATO member country in Europe. The contract will equip the aircraft with a suite of advanced EW technologies, including Radar Warning Receivers (RWR) and Countermeasure Dispensing Systems (CMDS), designed to rapidly detect and respond to enemy threats in even the most challenging environments.

In this beginner's guide to electronic warfare, we will explore the fundamentals of this essential technology, its applications, and its role in modern military operations.

What is Electronic Warfare?

Electronic warfare (EW) is the use of the electromagnetic spectrum to deny or disrupt an adversary's use of electronic devices, such as radar and communication systems. It involves the use of both offensive and defensive measures to exploit, deceive, or jam enemy signals while protecting friendly ones. Electronic warfare plays a crucial role in modern military operations, as it can help gain a tactical advantage in the battle space.

What are some examples of EW capabilities and applications?

1. Electronic Attack (EA): This capability involves the use of electromagnetic energy to disrupt, deceive, or damage enemy electronic systems. It includes jamming of communication systems, radars, and other electronic devices.
2. Electronic Support (ES): This capability is used to locate and identify enemy electronic emissions, such as radar signals or communications. It includes systems such as radar warning receivers (RWR) and signals intelligence (SIGINT) equipment.
3. Electronic Protection (EP): This capability involves the use of measures to protect friendly electronic systems from electronic attacks. It includes systems such as chaff and flare dispensers, as well as encryption and other secure communication systems.
4. Cyber Warfare: This capability involves the use of computer networks and digital systems to conduct operations against enemy targets. It includes hacking, malware, and other cyber attacks.
5. Directed Energy Weapons (DEW): This capability involves the use of high-energy electromagnetic radiation to disable or destroy enemy targets. It includes systems such as high-power microwaves, lasers, and particle beams.

What's the current state of the UK's EW capability, and what steps have been taken to moderise it in recent years?

The UK's electronic warfare capability is highly advanced and is continuously being modernized and improved. Electronic warfare involves the use of electronic signals, such as radio waves, to disrupt or disable enemy communication and radar systems. The UK's electronic warfare capability includes a range of systems and technologies, including electronic support measures (ESM), electronic attack (EA), and electronic protection (EP) capabilities. The UK's Ministry of Defence (MOD) has been investing heavily in electronic warfare capability in recent years, including the development of new technologies and systems.

One of the key areas of focus has been on enhancing the UK's ESM capabilities, which involve intercepting and analyzing electronic signals to gather intelligence about enemy communication and radar systems. The MOD has invested in advanced ESM technologies, such as high-frequency direction finding (HFDF) systems, to improve the accuracy and speed of signal analysis.

Another area of focus has been on developing new EA capabilities, which involve jamming or disrupting enemy communication and radar systems. The UK has invested in advanced jamming technologies, such as electronic attack pods, which can be carried by aircraft or drones to disrupt enemy systems.

What types of skills are in high demand to support the continued development of UK EW capability?

Companies developing electronic warfare capabilities require various engineering jobs, such as systems engineers, hardware engineers, software engineers, RF (radio frequency) engineers, antenna engineers, and mechanical engineers.

Systems engineers are responsible for the overall design and integration of electronic warfare systems, while hardware engineers design and develop the physical components of the system, such as circuit boards and processors.

Software engineers develop the software that controls the electronic warfare system, and RF engineers design and develop the radio frequency components of the system, including antennas and transmitters.

Antenna engineers design and develop the antennas that are used to receive and transmit signals, while mechanical engineers are responsible for designing the physical structure of the system. Other job roles may include project managers, test engineers, and quality assurance engineers.

Which companies specialise in this area?

A wide arrange of companies are involved with the development of EW systems and capability. There are larger companies like BAE Systems, L3Harris, Leonardo, Thales, Qinetiq and Elbit Systems. There are also a whole array of SME companies like Pulse Power and Measurement, Roke Manor Research (Chemring), Enterprise Control Systems, Chess Dynamics, SEA ltd, and Horizon Technologies.

We hope you have found this a useful read. Please feel free to reach out to our consultants if you have any other questions about careers in EW and the Defence and Security industry more broadly.