Grumman E-2 Hawkeye

Updated: October 2026 – A stubby turboprop, two humming propellers, a tail with no fewer than four fins – and on top a huge, flat dish that looks as if someone had bolted a satellite dish to its back. Once you have seen it, you never forget it: that is the Grumman E-2 Hawkeye, the aircraft carrier’s flying radar. For more than 60 years it has watched the airspace around carrier strike groups, and in Europe it flies with the French Navy. Here you will learn how the Hawkeye came about, how to tell the E-2C from the E-2D and where to see it.

What is the E-2 Hawkeye?

The Hawkeye is a twin-engine, carrier-capable airborne early warning and control aircraft. Its job: to look as far over the horizon as possible. Because of the curvature of the Earth, a ship’s radar sees low-flying targets only late. A radar several kilometers up, on the other hand, picks up aircraft and missiles much earlier. The Hawkeye reports what is approaching, distributes the picture to ships and jets and directs its own fighters to their targets. In the Navy it is therefore known as the “eyes of the fleet.”

There are five people on board: two pilots up front and three specialists at consoles in the rear of the fuselage, who analyze the radar pictures and coordinate the airspace. It is powered by two T56 turboprops, the same basic engine type used in the Lockheed C-130 Hercules. The deep, steady hum earned it the nickname “Hummer.”

The special thing: the E-2 is built for life on the aircraft carrier. It launches by catapult, lands with its arresting hook in the wires and folds its wings so it fits on the cramped hangar deck. Larger land-based early warning aircraft such as the Boeing E-3 Sentry cannot do that – but they fly higher, longer and with a larger crew.

From Tracer to Hawkeye: how it came about

In the 1950s the US Navy used the E-1 Tracer for airspace surveillance, a piston-engined aircraft with a teardrop-shaped radome above the fuselage. With faster jets and new threats it was soon obsolete. Grumman, the venerable naval aircraft builder from Long Island, therefore designed an entirely new type with turboprops, a larger radar and, above all, powerful onboard data processing.

The prototype flew on October 21, 1960, and in January 1964 the first production version, the E-2A, entered service with the US Navy. The designers had strict requirements: weight, length and above all height had to fit the carriers of the time. That explains the Hawkeye’s quirks – such as the folding wings, which swing back and lie along the fuselage without touching the radar dome. Grumman called this principle “Sto-Wing.”

The Hawkeye also gave rise to a transport: the C-2 Greyhound, which for decades brought mail, spare parts and personnel to the carriers. It uses the E-2’s wings and engines but has a thicker fuselage with a rear ramp and no radar dome. In the Navy, this role is now taken over by the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey in the CMV-22B version.

The versions at a glance

For spotters, two versions matter today: the E-2C and the E-2D. The early versions A and B are long gone.

E-2C and Hawkeye 2000

The E-2C is the Hawkeye that defined the type for decades. It received a more powerful radar and new electronics and was continuously modernized, for example in the Group II and Group II Plus stages. The last major upgrade stage is called Hawkeye 2000. It brings new computers and consoles and, according to reference works, can track over 2,000 targets at once. This is exactly the version flown by the French Navy.

One visible upgrade concerns the propellers: with the NP2000 system, many Hawkeyes got eight blades instead of four. The new propellers run more smoothly, are easier to maintain and change the look noticeably – in photos, the best approach is to count the blades. The French aircraft were retrofitted as well.

E-2D Advanced Hawkeye

The E-2D looks almost identical to the E-2C but is a new aircraft inside. At its heart is the AN/APY-9 radar, supplied by Lockheed Martin. It works in the UHF band and also steers its beam electronically. That lets it watch individual areas selectively without waiting for the dome’s next rotation. Northrop Grumman cites more than 3,000 targets that can be tracked simultaneously. Added to this are a glass cockpit and aerial refueling, which extends mission time – a capability the E-2C does not have.

According to the manufacturer, around 70 E-2Ds are in service worldwide. The main customer is the US Navy, followed by Japan and France as export customers.

Feature	E-2C (Hawkeye 2000)	E-2D Advanced Hawkeye
Radar	mechanically rotating	AN/APY-9, rotating plus electronically steered
Cockpit	conventional instruments	glass cockpit
Aerial refueling	no	yes
Propellers	four or eight blades (after retrofit)	eight blades
Operators (selection)	France, Japan, Egypt, Taiwan (as E-2K)	US Navy, Japan, France (on order)

How to recognize the Hawkeye

The good news: the E-2 is one of the easiest military aircraft to identify. The radar dome is visible from a great distance. Confusion is most likely with other early warning aircraft that also carry a dome – but those are usually large jets.

Feature	E-2 Hawkeye	E-3 Sentry / E-767	E-7 Wedgetail
Propulsion	2 turboprops	4 or 2 jet engines	2 jet engines
Radar	round dome	round dome	flat “blade” on the fuselage
Tail	four vertical fins	one vertical fin	one vertical fin
Size	compact, carrier-capable	airliner size	airliner size
Folding wings	yes	no	no

The E-3 Sentry is based on the Boeing 707, the Japanese Boeing E-767 on the 767 – both are much larger and have jets. The E-7 Wedgetail carries a flat radar blade instead of a dome. And early warning systems based on the Saab 340 do have propellers but likewise an elongated blade instead of a dome. A comprehensive overview is given in the guide How to identify AWACS, maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft.

France: the Hawkeyes of Flottille 4F

For spotters in Europe, the French Hawkeye fleet is the most important. According to reference works, the Marine nationale is, besides the US Navy, the only operator that actually uses the E-2 from an aircraft carrier. This is made possible by the Charles de Gaulle, the only carrier in Europe with catapults and arresting wires for aircraft of this size.

The French aircraft belong to Flottille 4F, which was re-established with the Hawkeye in 2000. Before that, the unit had flown the Breguet Alizé from 1959 to 1997. Its home is the naval air station Lann-Bihoué near Lorient in Brittany. The fleet comprises three E-2C Hawkeye 2000s; the first aircraft joined the Navy in the late 1990s. Together with the Dassault Rafale M they form the backbone of the carrier group. According to relevant sources, the French Hawkeyes took part in operations over Afghanistan and Libya, among others.

The successor is settled: in September 2019 the French Ministry of Defense announced the purchase of three E-2D Advanced Hawkeyes, and in December 2020 France signed the purchase agreement with the US government. In December 2024, Northrop Grumman began building the first French E-2D at its St. Augustine plant in Florida. The first delivery is announced for 2027. Until then, the E-2C remains in service.

Interesting for you: Lann-Bihoué shares its runway with the civilian Lorient South Brittany Airport. If you are in the region, it is worth taking a look at the rules – what is allowed when photographing at airports and military installations in France is explained in the article Photographing at French airports. For military airfields in general, Photographing military airfields: the rules will help.

The other operators worldwide

Outside the US and France, the Hawkeye mostly flies from land bases. The overview shows the documented operators, with numbers only where they are reliable.

Operator	Versions	Notes
US Navy	E-2D, gradually replacing the E-2C	Main operator, squadrons on all aircraft carriers
France (Marine nationale)	3 E-2C Hawkeye 2000, 3 E-2D on order	Flottille 4F, Lann-Bihoué and Charles de Gaulle
Japan (Air Self-Defense Force)	E-2C and E-2D	in March 2023, per reference works, 10 E-2C and 6 E-2D, more on order
Taiwan	E-2K	four E-2Ts upgraded to E-2K, plus two new E-2Ks
Egypt	E-2C	in service since 1987, later supplemented
Mexico	E-2C	three former Israeli aircraft from the early 2000s, current inventory unclear
Israel	E-2C	historic, in service until 1994
Singapore	E-2C	historic, replaced in 2012 by Gulfstream-based early warning aircraft

Japan is the largest Hawkeye operator after the US. The E-2C entered service there in 1987 at Misawa, and since 2019 the fleet has been supplemented with E-2Ds. Israel flew its Hawkeyes from 1981 to 1994; three of them later went to Mexico. For spotters in Europe these operators are hardly relevant – unless you are planning a trip to Asia.

Where to see the Hawkeye in Europe

The chances are modest but not bad if you know where to look:

• Brittany: around Lann-Bihoué the French E-2Cs regularly fly training missions. Here you have the best chances in all of Europe.
• Carrier deployments: when the Charles de Gaulle is out in the Mediterranean, the Hawkeyes are on board. Occasionally they also land ashore then, for example during exercises.
• US carrier strike groups: when a US aircraft carrier cruises in the Mediterranean or Atlantic, an E-2D squadron is part of it. Shore visits are rare and hard to plan.
• Airshows: at big shows such as the Royal International Air Tattoo, naval aircraft are sometimes there and sometimes not. Which events are worth it is shown in Airshows in Europe for plane spotters.

Military flights are often missing from tracking services or appear only incompletely. How to keep track anyway is covered in the guide Tracking military aircraft online. For serial numbers and squadron assignments, databases such as Scramble are worth a look; how US Navy serials are structured is explained in the article US military serials. Anyone who wants to experience early warning aircraft in Germany cannot ignore the NATO fleet – tips in the article NATO air base Geilenkirchen.

Photo tips for the Hawkeye

The Hawkeye is a rewarding subject because its shape is so unusual. A few tricks still help:

For light planning, the guide Planning sun position for your photo spot helps; for shows, see the tips in Photographing airshows.

The Hawkeye in the carrier air wing

On an aircraft carrier the Hawkeye never works alone. In the US Navy it directs the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and the F-35C, while the EA-18G Growler jams enemy radars. It used to share the deck with the Grumman F-14 Tomcat, the most famous jet from the same company. In the French Navy the Rafale M is its partner. On land, maritime patrol aircraft such as the Boeing P-8 Poseidon add to the picture. How to tell apart the fighter jets of these units is shown in Identifying fighter jets in Europe.

Logging the Hawkeye in Planetrack

A Hawkeye sighting in Europe is a real catch. In Planetrack you post it with photo, aircraft type, registration, operator, airport and spot and then keep it permanently in your hangar. On your wish list you note what you still need – such as the first French E-2D. The spot map shows you how to get there, the best light and community photos, and in the community you share your pictures, collect likes and comments or chat with other military spotters.

Conclusion

The E-2 Hawkeye is a classic that does not age. It has flown from aircraft carriers since 1964, and with the E-2D it has made the leap into the present. For spotters it is a dream: radar dome, four fins and folding wings make it unmistakable. In Europe, France is the key – the three E-2Cs of Flottille 4F from Lann-Bihoué, which are set to be replaced by E-2Ds.