Electronic Warfare

Electromagnetic warfare, also known as electronic warfare, is a branch of military activity concerned with exploiting, controlling and protecting access to the electromagnetic spectrum. Its central aim is to deny adversaries the freedom to operate in the electromagnetic environment while safeguarding friendly operations. Because contemporary military systems depend heavily on radio communication, radar, navigation signals and electronic sensing, control of the spectrum is a critical component of modern conflict. Electromagnetic warfare can be conducted in the air, at sea, on land or in space by both crewed and uncrewed platforms.

The Electromagnetic Environment

Military operations now take place within an information environment that includes an increasingly congested and contested electromagnetic spectrum. The segment of this environment shaped by radio waves, infrared energy and directed-energy emissions is described as the electromagnetic environment. As military systems rely on access to communications and sensing technologies, they become vulnerable to interference. At the same time, this dependency creates opportunities to influence, degrade or deny adversary systems.
Electromagnetic warfare is therefore considered an integral component of information warfare. It encompasses offensive and defensive counter-information activities, and in NATO doctrine it is recognised as a manoeuvre space comparable to land, sea and air domains. Alongside electronic warfare, other electromagnetic operations include intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance, as well as signals intelligence.
Primary activities within the field exploit characteristics of electromagnetic energy. They include countermeasures in the radio, infrared and electro-optical ranges; deception and masking techniques; probing and reconnaissance; spectrum management; reprogramming of systems to respond to new threats; and the use of wartime reserve modes that alter system behaviour under combat conditions.

Subdivisions of Electromagnetic Warfare

Electronic warfare is traditionally divided into three principal functions: electronic attack, electronic protection and electronic warfare support.

Electronic Attack

Electronic attack involves the offensive use of electromagnetic energy or directed-energy weapons to degrade, disrupt or destroy enemy capabilities. Jamming is a frequent method, targeting communication links or radar systems to obscure information or render systems ineffective. Antiradiation weapons, such as missiles designed to home in on radar emissions, represent another form of electronic attack by directing kinetic effects against emitting equipment.
Modern developments include multifunction systems capable of targeting numerous threats simultaneously across varying distances. Reports of operational use illustrate the role of electronic attack in disabling or diverting unmanned aerial vehicles and precision-guided munitions. Ineffective flight paths and aborted strikes can result when adversary navigation or control links are disrupted.

Electronic Protection

Electronic protection comprises measures designed to safeguard personnel, equipment and capabilities from the effects of electronic attack, whether caused deliberately by adversaries or inadvertently by friendly forces. Techniques include emissions control, spread-spectrum communication, stealth design and the use of restricted frequency lists to minimise vulnerability.
Examples of protection at the platform level include chaff and flare systems for diverting radar-guided or infrared-guided missiles, directional infrared countermeasures and digital radio-frequency memory decoys. Electronic warfare self-protection suites integrate these technologies, particularly for aircraft, to counter a spectrum of threats in real time. The effectiveness of protective measures hinges on anticipating enemy countermeasures and maintaining system resilience.
Training environments, such as electronic warfare tactics ranges, provide controlled exposure to simulated threats. These allow aircrew, naval personnel and ground forces to practise detection, response and survivability measures in conditions that replicate operational scenarios.

Electronic Warfare Support

Electronic warfare support focuses on detecting, intercepting, identifying and locating sources of electromagnetic energy to enable timely threat recognition. These activities provide battlefield commanders with immediate situational awareness and underpin intelligence-driven decision-making.
Support measures often overlap with signals intelligence disciplines. Electronic intelligence involves analysing emissions from radar and other sensing systems, while communications intelligence relates to intercepted voice and data transmissions. Parameters such as frequency, bandwidth, modulation and polarisation are studied to classify sources and infer intent.
Although electronic warfare support is primarily tactical, collection systems often gather information of strategic importance. The distinction lies in purpose and command: support assets respond to immediate operational requirements, whereas strategic signals intelligence feeds broader analytical and political objectives.
Large-scale facilities dedicated to intercept and analyse electromagnetic emissions contribute to national intelligence networks, supporting both defence planning and operational activities.