; MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. -- Working with American firms like the Boeing Company, the Navy and Marine Corps team remains at the forefront of aviation technology.

At the invitation of Marine Aircraft Group 11, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Boeing development employees were on hand near the flight line at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar Aug. 2 to highlight one of the most up-to-date, next-generation electronic attack systems designed for the battlefield of the near future: the EA-18G dubbed the "Growler."

"This trailer is a Mobile Integrated Battlespace Simulator and is a fully transportable demonstration platform that travels across the country to military bases so we can meet with the military community to better understand our customers and their requirements," said Richard E. Boalbey, business development manager for the EA-18G program, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems. "The Marine Corps and the folks at Boeing have agreed that this is a more informal way to help further educate people here at Miramar about the capabilities of the EA-18G specifically, but we have software that can simulate other aircraft like the F/A-18E and F/A-18F Super Hornets as well."

Externally, the EA-18G-a contender to replace the EA-6B Prowler-looks like the Super Hornet but is set apart by various internal and external systems, like wingtip pods, communication countermeasures sets, jamming pods and a sophisticated avionics pallet in the nose instead of a cannon.

Built for the Navy by the industry team of Boeing, Northrop Grumman, General Electric Aircraft Engines, Raytheon and hundreds of other suppliers, the EA-18G, in particular, combines the combat-proven, two-seat, twin-engine F/A-18F Super Hornet with the EA-6B system to provide next-generation electronic attack capability, according to Boalbey.

"Configured today is a full, high fidelity EA-18G and F/A-18E/F Super Hornet flight simulator," said Boalbey. "Today we are primarily running the EA-18G software to show the folks who will be fighting in or alongside the EA-18G in the fleet in 2009. We aren't running them today for our visitors, but we have other capabilities. For instance we can bring up the B-52 or F-15 simulator."

Michelle Ditton, one of Boeing's simulation managers demonstrating the software for visitors, said that the non-sensitive, declassified systems in the simulator are often shown to the public at military aviation demonstrations like the MCAS Miramar Air Show.

The darkened simulator familiarizes military aviators with the systems on board the EA-18G, and visitors can also watch how the fight unfolds on screen.

"We have a briefing room off to the side where we can answer questions that people may have and it's a good chance to chat and ask visitors if they are interested in the things that they are seeing," explained Boalbey. "The EA-18G will be an important element in establishing and maintaining air superiority in the integrated battlespace. Furthermore, it will perform a wide range of electronic support, electronic attack and information warfare missions. The EA-18G can very rapidly identify, locate and suppress some of the most sophisticated threats to coalition aircraft and is designed to increase the survivability of joint task force operations."

With more than 200 Super Hornets delivered to the Navy through January 2005, it is the only true multi-role strike fighter that can satisfy the most tactical mission requirements, said Boalbey.

The Super Hornet, unlike the F/A-18C/D models currently flown by the Marine Corps, has 42 percent fewer parts, system overheat monitoring, improved wheel and brake assemblies, electronic flight control, an electronic throttle and has maintenance free brake accumulators, according to www.boeing.com.

"More than 900 lessons learned from the 'C' and 'D' models were incorporated into the development of the F/A-18E/F," said Boalbey.

Combat-proven F/A-18C/D Hornets remain highly survivable, reliable and maintainable fighter aircraft and will likely continue to serve beyond 2020 thanks to its advanced weapons and systems such as Advanced Targeting Forward Looking Infrared and Joint Direct Attack Munitions currently employed in Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, said Boalbey.

"The multi-mission Super Hornet has revolutionary advances in full multi-mission capability, is equipped for network centric operations and can easily be converted into an EA-18G thanks to transformational systems capability," explained Boalbey. "The EA-18G and the Super Hornet will greatly transform the carrier-based air wing and will provide highly flexible air power for the Navy and the Marine Corps."