US Air Force Speeds Up Electromagnetic Waveform Development
The U.S. Air Force’s 350th Spectrum Warfare Wing has accelerated electromagnetic waveform development to sharpen electronic-warfare responsiveness, halving waveform reprogramming times under Col. Larry Fenner’s command and moving to update dozens of systems in hours rather than months — a shift driven by lessons from current conflicts and exercises such as Rapid Raven that exposed the use of low-cost, innovative jamming in Ukraine and elsewhere. The effort combines faster Mission Data File updates, greater automation of reprogramming workflows, and exploration of AI/ML to speed signal isolation and waveform generation, while also expanding training and distributed reprogramming posture since the wing’s July 9, 2024 change of command and subsequent 2024–2025 exercises. Takeaway for Indian research agencies and EW firms: prioritise short-cycle MDF/reprogramming pipelines, invest in automation and AI-ready data architectures, replicate rapid exercise models to validate updates under operational tempo, and develop low-cost counters to adversary asymmetric jamming — all to ensure spectrum agility in future theatres.