The third and fourth Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft for the Japan Air Self-Defence Force (JASDF) have arrived in Japan, a JASDF spokesperson told Jane’s on 16 April.
The spokesperson said that the two E-2Ds (with serial numbers 473 and 474) were shipped to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in March 2020 but have yet to be formally received by the JASDF.
Following assembly and some test flights at Iwakuni, the two aircraft, which belong to an initial batch of four, are set to be transferred to Misawa Air Base in Aomori Prefecture in northern Japan where the JASDF’s 601st Squadron, which operates both E-2C and E-2D aircraft, is based.
Two more Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye AEW&C aircraft (similar to this one) on order for the JASDF arrived in Japan in March 2020, according to officials. (JASDF)
“It has not yet been determined when the E-2Ds will be transferred by Northrop Grumman to Misawa due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 coronavirus,” said the spokesperson.
The US Department of Defense (DoD) announced in September 2019 that the US Naval Air Systems Command had awarded Northrop Grumman a USD1.36 billion contract modification for the production and delivery of nine additional aircraft to Japan, bringing to the number of E-2Ds under contract for the JASDF to 13.
The spokesperson said that only the first of the initial batch of four E-2Ds has been deployed to Misawa, with the second aircraft still in the United States.
Looking to read the full article?
Gain unlimited access to Janes news and more...
