The EP-3 of the US Navy is a relatively advanced electronic reconnaissance plane, which belongs to the "electronic spy" in the sky over the sea, and has an important position among the reconnaissance planes of the three US services. An EP-3 electronic reconnaissance plane of the US Navy collided with and destroyed a Chinese military plane in the air over the South China Sea. The EP-3 electronic reconnaissance plane is a highly classified aircraft of the US military.
The EP-3 series of electronic reconnaissance planes is a modified version of the P-3 Orion maritime antisubmarine patrol plane, and the EP-3 aircraft is equipped with the most advanced signal interceptor of the US intelligence department, which is jointly designed by top US intelligence experts and computer experts, and organically combines tactical communications, electronic support measures, special signal processing, and utilization systems, so that the collected intelligence can be processed in one stop.
A state-of-the-art air signals intelligence gathering system was also installed on the EP-3. This system is an important component of the "Joint Signals Intelligence Aircraft Modernization" program that the US military has recently completed, and it can greatly improve the on-board processing capability of electronic communication signals intercepted during reconnaissance.
The huge EP-3 has four turboprop engines, a wingspan of 30 meters, a total length of 35.6 meters, a stay time of more than 10 hours, and a combat radius of 2,500 km to 3,800 km depending on the mission. The main functions are anti-submarine, maritime dynamic surveillance, electronic intelligence collection, long-range target search and economic sea patrol. It can also carry anti-submarine weapons such as torpedoes and depth charges, Harpoon anti-ship missiles, and "Sidewinder" air-to-air missiles for self-defense.
The dish antenna under the belly of the aircraft is the APS-115 frequency-hopping search radar, which is the most eye-catching target identification. In addition, this type of electronic reconnaissance aircraft is also equipped with a lot of rectifier radomes and knife-type and horn-type antennas in the belly, back, and wing ends, which mainly provide ALR-60 communication interception and analysis system, ALQ-76 electronic jammer, ALQ-78 automated electronic support measures, ALQ-108 friend or foe identifier jammer, ALR-132 infrared jammer, ALR-52 spontaneous frequency measurement equipment, AAR-37 infrared detector and other use, the whole system is handled by the ASQ-114 computer host.
The EP-3 electronic reconnaissance aircraft is equipped with a sophisticated and sophisticated electronic reconnaissance system, and is an important US military reconnaissance aircraft in the western Pacific region, which can grasp and monitor radio communications, radar transmission parameters, or electronic warfare parameters. In addition to these disclosed equipment, there are also classified and state-of-the-art detection equipment, which can be flexibly swapped and matched according to the characteristics of the mission.
The EP-3 belongs to the US Navy land-based reconnaissance aircraft, with a variety of models, the most advanced is the EP-3E series II reconnaissance aircraft. The EP-3E Series II is about 33 meters long, 11 meters high, with a wingspan of about 30 meters, equipped with four T56-1-14 turboprop engines, and flies at an altitude of about 9,000 meters. The aircraft is staffed by 24 people, of which 7 are officers and 17 are soldiers. In general, they include 3 drivers, 1 navigator, 1 random mechanic. Once aerial poaching is carried out, the aircraft can fly continuously for 12 hours and have a range of about 5,400 kilometers.
The US Navy began to use the EP-60 in the 60s of the 3th century. At that time, the EP-3 was modified with the US Navy's P-3 Modified Type III patrol aircraft. The P-3 Modified III patrol aircraft is a multi-purpose patrol aircraft capable of carrying a variety of weapons such as missiles and torpedoes for anti-submarine and anti-ship operations.
The EP-3E Series II aircraft has all-weather reconnaissance capabilities, is highly maneuverable, and can quickly provide the required information. Once the aircraft receives an order, it can immediately take off and go to the airspace near the target for reconnaissance. This type of aircraft is equipped with top-notch electronic reconnaissance equipment, including detection/tracking radars, electronic eavesdropping equipment for radio and other communication systems, and mainly collects the electronic signals of the opponent's air defense system, especially the radar signals of the opponent's warships and the radio signals of the enemy's air defense positions in depth, so as to determine the specific location of the opponent's air defense system, and make up for the shortcomings of the US military's spy satellites and air force reconnaissance planes. Once participating in combat, this type of aircraft can provide information on the opponent's anti-aircraft missile positions to US fighters equipped with radars to attack them. At the same time, the aircraft can also assess the damage to the opponent's electronic warfare system on the battlefield, including the extent of the damage to the opponent's air defense radar. The cost of a flight is about $2,100 per hour, so a flight costs tens of thousands of dollars.
Currently, the US Navy has 11 extremely advanced EP-3E series II reconnaissance aircraft, the 12th of which has been modernized and converted from a P-3C, and is now in service. The 12 aircraft of this type will basically meet the needs of the US Navy for aerial reconnaissance.
During the Cold War, the EP-3 served the CIA and the NSA in intelligence agencies. During the 1991 Gulf War, this type of aircraft was in full swing, eavesdropping on the communications and intelligence of the Iraqi army's air defense units, spying on the other side's military secrets, and providing services for the US military's operations. Based on the intelligence of this type of aircraft, the US tactical commander repeatedly launched air attacks and ground artillery attacks on the Iraqi army.
In the 90s of the 20th century, three aircraft of this type took off daily from the forward base in Crete, Greece, closely monitoring the development of the situation in Albania and monitoring Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to the arrangements of the US National Security Agency, this type of aircraft also monitors military movements in North Africa and the Middle East.
The EP-3 electronic reconnaissance aircraft is currently in service only the EP-3E type. An EP-3 electronic reconnaissance plane of the US Navy collided with a Chinese military aircraft in the sky over the South China Sea. It has been learned that the EP-3 electronic reconnaissance plane is a highly classified aircraft of the US military.
Although this type of aircraft is an important reconnaissance aircraft of the US Navy, it has some inherent shortcomings. Among them, the aircraft cannot be refueled in the air, so it has to rely on bases in other countries to carry out air poaching. Once another country refuses to provide a base to the US Navy, the aerial reconnaissance of this type of aircraft will be greatly restricted.