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 Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work signed a memo creating a new
"Electronic Warfare Executive Committee" to be chaired by Pentagon
acquisition chief Frank Kendall and Admiral James Winnefeld, vice
chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Work told a conference hosted by McAleese & Associates and Credit
Suisse that the United States still had greater capabilities in the
electromagnetic spectrum than potential adversaries, but other
countries were investing heavily.
"We still have a lead, but I think that lead is diminishing
rapidly," Work told the conference.
In the memo, Work said he created the panel after the Defense
Science Board found the Pentagon had "lost focus on electronic
warfare at the programmatic and strategic level."
 He said the committee would oversee and coordinate electronic
warfare programs, strategy and acquisition, while balancing budget
and capability needs.
The move could spell good news for Boeing Co, which builds
electronic attack jets for the Navy, but may open opportunities for
other companies that work in the sector, including Raytheon Co and
Northrop Grumman Corp as well as Britain's BAE Systems Plc.
Kendall told reporters the committee's work would have some impact
on the Pentagon budget process, but it was unlikely to get the full
$2 billion in extra funding for electronic warfare equipment
recommended by the science board last year.
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He said he did not favor designating one service to manage all
electronic warfare needs for the entire military since each of the
services had its own needs and capabilities.
The Navy is nearing the end of a separate study of electronic
warfare requirements across the military services. A top admiral
last week said the study would probably point to the need for more
Boeing EA-18G electronic attack jets, but Boeing needed orders in
fiscal 2016 to preserve the option of building more EA-18Gs in
coming years.
Kendall said he was more concerned about getting to a
next-generation capability than extending the Boeing production line
to maintain the option of buying more Growlers.
"The problem is that even if Boeing gets another foreign sale," he
said, "at some point in the next few years for sure they’re going to
have to shut down the line."
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Dan Grebler, Lisa Von Ahn
and Ken Wills)
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