Northrop’s E-2D Block II upgrade package completed a key government-led critical design review, clearing the way to begin integration and testing, with delivery before 2030.
Defence manufacturer Northrop Grumman says it has completed a critical design review of the Block II upgrade package for the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye carrier-based airborne warning and control aircraft.
Northrop says it cleared the US Navy-led review on 18 August, clearing the way for the E-2D Block II to begin integration and testing. The company describes the new configuration as the most significant upgrade in the history of the E-2D programme.
“This upgrade strengthens the E-2D’s suite of capabilities, enhancing situational awareness, reducing crew workload and paving the way for future technology,” says Janice Zilch, Northrop’s programme manager for the Advanced Hawkeye.
The company describes the Block II upgrade as a comprehensive overhaul of the aircraft’s mission system software and hardware. That will include the incorporation of open source systems, which Northrop says will reduce both sustainment and modernisation costs.
Northrop plans to roll out the Block II package both on new-build aircraft and as a retrofit to serving E-2Ds. The type is in active production in St Augustine, Florida.
The company says it will deliver the Block II aircraft by the end of this decade.
The US Navy is the primary E-2D customer, with 89 examples in service and 13 more on order, according to fleet data from aviation analytics company Cirium. The Japan Air Self-Defense Force also operates the E-2D, and the E-2D will replace France’s older E-2Cs.
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