Boeing recently delivered the first production EA-18G Growler to the Navy, “ahead of schedule and within budget,” according to a Boeing release. The Navy plans to have the Growler replace the EA-6B Prowler, which it has contracted Northrop Grumman to upgrade to prolong its usefulness through 2018. Even with the extended Prowlers and the new Growlers, Pentagon officials acknowledge an electronic attack coverage gap.
The U.S. sent Air Force F-16s over central Syria in a show of force following the Dec. 13 killing of two U.S. Army Soldiers and one American civilian interpreter by a gunman linked to the Islamic State group.

