Ultimately, the aircraft will receive the official name Phoenix II. Deliveries are scheduled to be completed by the end of 2034, with a total plan to build eighteen aircraft through the conversion of standard C-130J-30 Super Hercules airframes (the first of which is already in the assembly stage). The conversion process is set to begin in 2026.
The conversion contractor is Northrop Grumman; the contract for the work was signed in December 2024. The primary subcontractor, alongside Lockheed Martin, will be Collins Aerospace, the supplier of the Very Low Frequency (VLF) communication system. The program is divided into three phases. Initially, three prototype aircraft will be converted. In the second phase, another three aircraft (a low-rate initial production batch) will undergo conversion, and the third phase will cover the remaining units.
Image: Northrop Grumman
The primary mission of the E-130J Phoenix II aircraft will be to maintain Very Low Frequency (VLF) communications between command centers and submarines armed with intercontinental ballistic missiles. The home base for the three squadrons to be re-equipped with the E-130J will be Tinker, in the state of Oklahoma.
