The US Navy’s ‘doomsday plane’ project is delayed

In a report published on July 2, the US Government Audit Office (GAO) said the concerns the agency raised last year about the E-130J Phoenix II aircraft project “have become a reality”. The decision to move the project to the initial production phase in small quantities was also delayed by about a year.

Joseph Trevithick, editor of the military site War Zonebelieves that the above information means that the decision to start small production production (LRIP) of the aircraft will be delayed until April 2029.

“The US Navy awarded the contract despite admitting that the E-130J program faces major technical risks. An independent assessment in September 2024 pointed out the complexity of the integration plan within the program framework. US naval officials also admitted that the aircraft will be much more complex when integrating new technologies,” GAO said.

The E-130J aircraft was developed to replace the US Navy’s E-6B Mercury aircraft in the role of carrying out the TACAMO mission, providing aerial command and firing orders for the strategic submarine fleet carrying nuclear missiles.

Vehicles that undertake nuclear support missions like TACAMO are often called “doomsday planes”.

GAO once questioned the decision to choose the C-130J-30 Hercules transport body as the basis for developing the E-130J model, saying that the C-130J line may not meet the requirements for operational capacity. The E-6B aircraft was built on the basis of the Boeing 707 passenger aircraft, larger in size than the C-130J and using a turbojet engine, but the production line has long been closed.

“Program officials said the contractor is focusing on modifying existing mission systems to reduce weight. According to independent assessment, this is necessary to be able to install them on the C-130J-30 aircraft,” GAO said in a report published on July 2.

The US Navy currently plans to purchase six E-130J prototypes in fiscal year 2027 to support development. At least one aircraft is under construction. Some aircraft may then enter service.

Meanwhile, the first batch of LRIP is expected to include 3-6 aircraft. It is unclear how many E-130Js the US Navy will put into use in total.