Direct proof of use
The EA-18G Growler was used by the United States during the 2023 Red Sea Crisis through Electronic Attack Squadron VAQ-130, the "Zappers," embarked with Carrier Air Wing 3 aboard USS Dwight D. Eisenhower. A U.S. Navy release on the squadron's July 2024 return identified VAQ-130 as the only EA-18G Growler squadron in the air wing and said the unit flew continuous combat operations in the Southern Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb Strait, and Gulf of Aden.
The same Navy release reported that VAQ-130 conducted seven pre-planned strikes into Houthi-controlled Yemen under Operation Yukon Lightning and nearly 700 combat missions during the deployment. It also said the squadron was the first to employ an Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile in combat and the first Growler squadron in Navy history to score an air-to-air kill.
Sources: VAQ-130 Deployment Return, TWZ Growler AARGM Hind, TWZ Growler Air-to-Air Kill
Timeline
On February 24, 2024, U.S. Central Command and allied forces struck 18 Houthi targets in Yemen, including air-defense systems, radars, and a helicopter. The War Zone later reported, citing a Navy official, that a VAQ-130 Growler from the Eisenhower deployment used an AGM-88E AARGM in an air-to-surface engagement that destroyed a suspected Houthi Mi-24/35 rotary-wing aircraft on the ground during that strike set.
By July 2024, VAQ-130 had returned from the deployment with a broader operational record: seven planned strikes into Yemen, nearly 700 combat missions, support to missile launches by coalition assets, the first combat AARGM employment from a Growler, and the Growler type's first reported air-to-air kill.
Sources: CENTCOM February 24 Yemen Strikes, TWZ Growler AARGM Hind, VAQ-130 Deployment Return, TWZ Growler Air-to-Air Kill
Narrative
The documented user was the United States, operating VAQ-130 Growlers from USS Dwight D. Eisenhower during a carrier deployment built around Operation Prosperity Guardian and related U.S.-led strike activity. The mission area named in official Navy material was the Southern Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb Strait, and Gulf of Aden, with strike activity directed into Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen.
The Growler's documented role combined electronic attack, suppression or attack of air-defense-related targets, and defensive counter-air work against Houthi aerial threats. Official Navy material describes the aircraft as the U.S. military's only dedicated electronic-attack aircraft and identifies VAQ-130's primary role as suppression of enemy air defenses. Stars and Stripes reported that the Growlers searched for Houthi missile and drone launch points and went after radar installations tied to those threats.
The most specific public weapon-release evidence is the Navy-confirmed AARGM engagement reported by The War Zone. That account attributed the February 24 event to a VAQ-130 Growler from the Eisenhower deployment and described the target as a suspected Houthi Mi-24/35 helicopter on the ground. Later reporting also tied a VAQ-130 Growler to the type's first air-to-air kill, likely against a Houthi drone, while noting that public details of that engagement remained limited.
Sources: VAQ-130 Deployment Return, Stars and Stripes Red Sea Deployment, TWZ Growler AARGM Hind, TWZ Growler Air-to-Air Kill
