September 11/17: L-3 Communications will move forward external link with migrating the US Air Force’s EC-130H Compass Call equipment to a Gulfstream 550 Conformal Airborne Early Warning (CAEW) aircraft, after the Government Accountability Office (GAO) turned down a protest from rivals Boeing and Bombardier last month.
The Compass Call “crossdeck” program (EC-X), will transition mission equipment from the USAF’s existing fleet of Lockheed Martin EC-130H aircraft, which serves as a communications eavesdropper and jammer for the service, onto new Gulfstream business jets.
A service spokesperson said that a final agreement with L-3 on contract terms, specifications and price of the undefinitised contract action (UCA) is still pending.
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Moving Compass Call onto this sort of platform follows the U.S. Navy’s plan to replace its old NP-3D “Billboard” aircraft with a new plane using the Gulfstream G550 special mission design, which some have referred to as the NC-37B. These aircraft monitor missile tests and conduct other research, as well as keep an eye for unwanted visitors over the testing grounds.
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