U.S. Navy EA-18G Electronic Attack Jets Played a Central Role in Breaking Venezuela’s Air Defences

Defence affairs - Def-Geopolitics

Following the U.S. Armed Forces’ initiation of Operation Absolute Resolve against Venezuela on January 3, which saw multiple military and infrastructure targets across the capital destroyed and President Nicolas Maduro abducted by U.S. Army Delta Force operators.

growing information has emerged regarding how South America’s most capable air defence network was rapidly penetrated. U.S. Navy EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft, which are highly specialised in the suppression and destruction of adversary air defences, were specifically confirmed to have played a central role in providing U.S. forces with near unrestricted access to airspace over the Venezuelan capital Caracas. Weeks of preceding operations near Venezuelan territory were reportedly key to paving the way to this, and allowed EA-18Gs to gather valuable intelligence using their vast arrays of passive sensors.

The EA-18G is a derivative of the F-18F medium weight fighter, and is capable of systematically mapping out radar systems, identifying their strengths, and probing or weaknesses, while also providing intelligence to allow for the development of more effective countermeasures. These capabilities are totally unique for Western fourth generation combat aircraft, with the only comparable aircraft being the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force J-16D and Navy J-15D which entered service in 2021 and 2024 respectively. The Soviet Union previously fielded its own highly specialised air defence suppression aircraft, most notably the MiG-25BM, although these were retired without replacement after the country disintegrated. The U.S. Air Force notably lacks its own equivalent aircraft, despite the possibility having been repeatedly been raised of one being developed based on the F-15E fighter.

Entering service in 2009, the EA-18G is scheduled to conclude production in 2027. The aircraft saw its production time lengthened by twelve years specifically due to delays developing and operationalising the F-35C, which is only expected to gain the Block 4 capabilities necessary for high intensity operations in the early 2030s. The F-35 itself integrates an array of passive sensors unprecedented for a multirole fighter, allowing them to fly electronic intelligence missions over Eastern Europe to gather invaluable information on Russian air defences, much as EA-18Gs have reportedly done when flying around Venezuela. Although the EA-18G provided a formidable capability against radar guided missile systems, the very low level flights of U.S. Army and Marine Corps helicopters raised questions regarding whether there was an agreement with elements in the country’s armed forces and political leadership to hold fire, since handheld surface-to-air missiles and anti-aircraft artillery could all have been used to fire on the targets without any radar guidance or emissions.