Two U.S. Air Force EA-37B Compass Call electronic attack aircraft arrived at RAF Mildenhall in the United Kingdom on March 31, 2026, following a transatlantic flight from Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona. The aircraft, operating under call signs AXIS41 and AXIS43, made a fuel stop at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey before crossing the Atlantic.
The deployment comes amid heightened U.S. operations against Iran under Operation Epic Fury, as confirmed by U.S. Central Command in an April 1 fact sheet that listed the EA-37B for the first time. This marks the platform’s first known combat use, even though it has not yet achieved full operational capability. The Air Force currently operates five EA-37Bs out of a planned fleet of ten, with the type entering service in August 2024 to replace the aging EC-130H Compass Call.
Built on a modified Gulfstream G550 business jet, the EA-37B specializes in non-kinetic electronic warfare, jamming enemy radars, communications, navigation systems, and disrupting command-and-control networks. It supports suppression of enemy air defenses and enables other aircraft to operate in contested environments by degrading adversary situational awareness. The timing follows reports of damage to legacy EC-130H aircraft at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia during an Iranian strike on March 27.
Photographs of one EA-37B at Mildenhall, showing fuselage modifications for electronic warfare gear and tail markings from Davis-Monthan, circulated on social media. The 43rd Electronic Combat Squadron at Davis-Monthan has conducted training sorties since May 2025, but this appears to be the type’s initial operational commitment to the Middle East theater.