EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. – Last spring, the 87th Electronic Warfare Squadron (EWS) COMBAT SHIELD team completed the first operational assessment of the Eagle Passive/Active Warning Survivability System (EPAWSS) on the F-15E Strike Eagle at Royal Air Force (RAF) Lakenheath, England, marking a significant leap forward in the aircraft’s ability to survive and dominate in modern combat environments.
The Air Force Electromagnetic Warfare Assessment program, known as COMBAT SHIELD, was established to assess and ensure the continued readiness and effectiveness of electromagnetic warfare systems onboard U.S. Air Force aircraft, with personnel regularly traveling throughout the world to conduct assessments.
“This tour at Lakenheath was particularly significant because it allowed us to evaluate the EPAWSS system in a realistic operational setting,” said U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Vanessa Gasswint, 87 EWS commander. “EPAWSS gave the 87th a great opportunity to assess a new system for a legacy aircraft and provide that feedback to the unit, commander and mission partners.”
EPAWSS is a next-generation electronic warfare system designed to provide enhanced situational awareness and self-protection capabilities for the F-15E/EX. It’s intended to detect, identify, and counter a wide range of threats, improving the aircraft's survivability in complex threat environments, with RAF Lakenheath and F-15EX based at Portland ANG being the first locations to gain the system.
Prior to EPAWSS’ fielding to the Combat Air Forces (CAF) fleet, the 36th Electronic Warfare Squadron developed multiple operational test mission data file (MDF) iterations, resulting in optimized system performance within a specified Area of Operations.
“Our team analyzes the latest intelligence data on enemy radar systems, missile threats and electronic warfare tactics to build and continuously update the MDFs that drive EPAWSS,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Anthony Mendez, 36th EWS F-15 Flight commander. “We have tested these MDFs in simulated environments to ensure their effectiveness in protecting the warfighter and enabling them to achieve their mission objectives.”
In preparation for the on-site EPAWSS testing at Lakenheath, the 36 EWS partnered with the 87 EWS ensuring the team understood expected system performance and established benchmarks for optimal functionality.
“The 87th EWS leverages our MDFs to establish a performance baseline for their testing equipment,” said Mendez. “This ensures their assessment accurately reflects the expected system responses.”
The 87 EWS’ testing involved exposing EPAWSS to a series of simulated anti-access/anti-denial (A2/AD) scenarios involving various electromagnetic threats. These threats were aligned with the data provided by the 36 EWS, which the 87 EWS team used to analyze and assess the EPAWSS’ performance and ability to sense, identify, located and respond to enemy radar systems.
“This was the first time we’ve had the opportunity to really put EPAWSS through its paces in a [simulated] deployed environment,” said Capt. Linsey Long, an F-15E Electronic Warfare Officer (EWO) with the 494 FS. “The insights gained from operating in a realistic threat environment are crucial to ensuring the system’s effectiveness in actual combat scenarios.”
The EPAWSS represents a substantial improvement over previous electronic warfare systems. Its advanced sensors and processing power allow for more precise threat identification and effective countermeasures allowing for increased survivability for the F-15E/EX and a greater ability to project power in heavily defended airspace. Additionally, EPAWSS has the capacity to utilize government-owned applications to achieve next-generation electromagnetic spectrum superiority.
“The difference between EPAWSS and the previous system is night and day,” said Long. “Before, we were often reacting to threats; with EPAWSS, we can proactively shape the electromagnetic environment to our advantage. This not only increases our survivability but also allows us to more effectively execute our missions and return home.”
The relationship between the 494 FS, 36 EWS and 87 EWS is critical to ensure EPAWSS operates as intended and there are no issues with the new system.
“Feedback is important,” said Mendez. “It’s crucial to provide our customers with the best capability that we can and the 494th's input is essential to doing effectively reprogramming their systems.”
With EPAWSS integrating into the Combat Air Force fleet, the 350th Spectrum Warfare Wing’s electromagnetic spectrum operations expertise supports the Air Force’s effort to modernize the fourth-generation aircraft, ensuring warfighters can maintain air superiority and dominate the spectrum.
| Date Taken: | 09.19.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 09.19.2025 13:19 |
| Story ID: | 548760 |
| Location: | EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 40 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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