The Navy and Boeing teamed up to demonstrate the remote
control of two unmanned EA-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft by a third F/A-18F
Super Hornet.(1) The Navy, of course, is
touting the miracle benefits of this concept …
in very vague, non-specific terms.
Let’s think about this for a moment.
How does having the ability to remote controlled unmanned
Growlers increase our combat capability?
At best, the unmanned Growlers have the exact same capabilities as manned
Growlers. More likely, the Growler is
not quite as capable without a human pilot operating the aircraft and systems. Certainly, it will be far less able to
execute defensive aerial maneuvers and thus far more susceptible to loss.
The only benefit is that unmanned Growlers don’t put pilots
at risk but that’s a very minor consideration since no one puts Growlers at
risk anyway – the aircraft are far too valuable to risk. Growlers are the very definition of a high
value unit. We only have a few of them
and they are far too valuable to risk.
So, whether they are manned or unmanned is, at best, irrelevant.
Now, if you want to use unmanned Growlers in high risk,
semi-suicidal missions then, yes, I guess they enhance our combat capability
but, again, no sane commander is going to use Growlers in high risk
scenarios. They’re too valuable – and expensive!
- to throw away, whether manned or unmanned.
To conclude … this was yet another technology stunt for the
sake of technology and does nothing to improve our actual, operational combat
capability. The Navy steadfastly refuses to think operationally. Instead, the substitute the pursuit of technology for strategy, doctrine, and tactics.
(1)Naval News website, “Boeing and U.S. Navy Successfully
Link Piloted, Unmanned Growlers”, Xavier Vavasseur, 4-Feb-2020,
https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2020/02/boeing-and-u-s-navy-successfully-link-piloted-unmanned-growlers/
