Overview
- The Navy formally accepted the C-130J-30 airframe on Oct. 15, 2026, and will transfer it to Northrop Grumman for conversion into the E-130J Phoenix II.
- Lockheed Martin built the airframe and Collins Aerospace will supply the very low frequency radios that let the aircraft send orders to submerged ballistic missile submarines.
- Before the aircraft can operate it must complete mission-systems modification, ground testing, and developmental flight testing, so it is not yet an operational TACAMO platform.
- The program faces tangible integration risks from fitting mission hardware into the C-130J-30 and managing size, weight, power, and cooling constraints, which prompted a roughly one-year slip to the low-rate initial production decision.
- The Navy plans six pre-production E-130Js and 25 production aircraft for a 31-aircraft fleet and Congress has asked the Air Force for a plan to retain the separate airborne command-post Looking Glass capability.