Northrop Grumman has been awarded a $387m (€352m) contract modification to produce three uniquely configured E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft for the Marine Nationale (French Navy).
The three E-2Ds are scheduled to be delivered by 2028 and will replace the Marine Nationale’s three existing E-2C Hawkeye 2000s. The Advanced Hawkeye features a state-of-the-art APY-9 radar and upgraded aircraft systems that will provide enhanced surveillance detection and tracking capabilities against advanced threat aircraft and cruise missiles in overland, littoral and open ocean environments, while also improving supportability and increasing readiness. Northrop Grumman claims the E-2D is the most advanced command and control (C2) platform in the world and that it will enhance defence cooperation between the US and France.
For this deal, Northrop Grumman’s Aeronautics Systems division in Melbourne, Florida, is serving as the prime contractor, with US Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, assuming the role of contracting activity. The US State Department initially approved the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) agreement for the French acquisition of three E-2Ds from the US Navy in July 2020, and the French Ministry of Armed Forces announced that it had signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance in December, that year. France will become the second export customer for the E-2D, after Japan, which has already purchased 13 Advanced Hawkeyes for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force.
Northrop Grumman’s Military Aircraft Systems division (also based in Melbourne) was awarded a $353m modification to a previously awarded contract in December 2021. This modification allowed Northrop Grumman to start production of the three E-2Ds for the Marine Nationale. France plans to build a new nuclear-powered Porte Avion Nouvelle Generation (PANG; Next-Generation Aircraft Carrier) to replace its flagship, FS Charles de Gaulle (R91), by 2038.
