| EA-6 Prowler |
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A U.S. Navy EA-6B Prowler |
| Description |
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| Role | Electronic attack |
| Crew | Four: pilot and three electronic countermeasures officers |
| Dimensions |
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| Length | 59 ft 10 in | 17.7 m |
| Wingspan | 53 ft | 15.9 m |
| Height | 16 ft 8 in | 4.9 m |
| Wing area | 528.9 ft² | 49.1 m² |
| Weights |
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| Empty | 34,000 lb | 15,450 kg |
| Loaded | | |
| Maximum take-off | 61,500 lb | 27,500 kg |
| Powerplant |
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| Engines | 2 × Pratt & Whitney J52-P408A turbojets |
| Thrust | 10,400 lbf | 46 kN |
| Performance |
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| Maximum speed | 575 mph | 920 km/h |
| Combat range | | |
| Ferry range | 2,022 mi (tanks kept)
2,400 mi (tanks dropped) | 3,254 km
3,861 km |
| Service ceiling | 37,600 ft | 11,500 m |
| Rate of climb | 12,900 ft/min | 3,932 m/min |
| Armament |
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| Guns | None |
| Missiles | Up to 4 HARM AGM-88 antiradar missiles |
The EA-6 Prowler is the United States Navy's and the United States Marine Corps's primary electronic warfare aircraft. The primary mission of the aircraft is to support strike aircraft and ground troops by interrupting enemy electronic activity and obtaining tactical electronic intelligence within a combat area.
Development
The EA-6B Prowler is a twin-engine, mid-wing aircraft manufactured by Northrop Grumman Aerospace Corporation as a modification of the basic A-6 Intruder air frame. Designed for carrier and advanced base operations, the Prowler is a fully integrated electronic warfare system combining long-range, all-weather capabilities with advanced electronic countermeasures. A forward equipment bay, and pod-shaped faring on the vertical fin, house the additional avionics equipment.
An earlier EA-6A was developed as a straightforward conversion of the standard, two-seat A-6 airframe, but it was essentially an interim aircraft used only by a few USMC squadrons.
The much more advanced and substantially redesigned EA-6B first flew on 25 May 1968 and entered service with VAQ-132 'Scorpions' in July 1971. It remains in service, although it is slated to be replaced after 2009 by the EF-18G, a new electronic warfare derivative of the F/A-18E Super Hornet.
Units using the EA-6B
USN squadrons
- VAQ-128 Phoenix (disestablished 2004)
- VAQ-129 Vikings
- VAQ-130 Zappers
- VAQ-131 Lancers
- VAQ-132 Scorpions
- VAQ-133 Wizards
- VAQ-134 Garudas
- VAQ-135 Black Ravens
- VAQ-136 Gauntlets
- VAQ-137 Rooks
- VAQ-138 Yellow Jackets
- VAQ-139 Cougars
- VAQ-140 Patriots
- VAQ-141 Shadowhawks
- VAQ-142 Grey Wolves
USMC squadrons
- VMAQ-1 Banshees
- VMAQ-2 Death Jesters
- VMAQ-3 Moon Dogs
- VMAQ-4 Seahawks
Incidents
It was an EA-6B Prowler that caused the Cavalese cable-car disaster in 1998, cutting the cables of a ski-lift in Italy and killing 20.
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