Business

Boeing delivers first 'Growler'

Posted September 24, 2007 11:00 pm

Associated Press

Chicago-based Boeing delivered the first Super Hornet EA-18G aircraft to the U.S. Navy on Monday as part of a $9.2 billion contract.

Instead of carrying missiles or cannons, the so-called Super Hornet "Growler" is equipped with radar-jamming equipment and other gear to knock out a wide array of electronic devices. The aircraft will fly with teams of conventional bombers and help disrupt enemy air defenses.

"It's essential to keep them guessing where you're coming from," Navy Rear Adm. Kenneth Floyd said.

The Navy will buy three Growlers to test during 2008. The aircraft are scheduled to be deployed in 2010, and the Navy has agreed to buy 85 by 2013, though the timing of the contract is flexible, said Mike Gibbons, Boeing's program manager for the Growler project.

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