On January 27, 2020, the EA-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft of the U.S. Navy's 131st Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ-131) stationed at Whidbe Island Naval Air Station participated in the Red Flag 20-1 exercise at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.
Red Flag is the U.S. Air Force's premier air combat training exercise that provides air combat experiences for crews in realistic environments.
Nellis Air Force Base is one of the largest fighter bases in the world, and the Nevada Test and Training Range provides more than 15,000 square miles of airspace and 4,700 square miles of no-go.
The EA-18G is a variant of the F/A-18 that primarily performs electronic attacks and suppression of enemy air defenses. In the future, an AN/ALQ-249(V)1 "Next Generation Jammer" medium-band (NGJ-MB) pod covering the 2GHz to 6GHz band, the ALQ-249(V)2 low-band (NGJ-LB) pod (covering 100MHz to 2GHz) and the V(3) high-band (NGJ-LB) pod (covering 6GHz to 18GHz) will be used.
The first EA-18G was delivered to the U.S. Navy's VAQ-29 Squadron on June 3, 2008, leading to initial operational capabilities in the fall of 2009.