Comment on VAW-117 E-2D Hawkeye Spotted with Kill Markings from Last Year’s Middle East Deployment by Charles Haas

["Stefano D'Urso", '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Where Img', 'Height Auto Max-Width', 'Vertical-Align Bottom .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Vertical-Align Middle .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar Is .Alignleft .Alignright'] Comments for The Aviationist 2025-09-18 00:00:00

The markings underline the Hawkeye’s critical role in the defense against drones and missiles during the events in the Middle East in late 2024. The E-2D Hawkeye is an Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) platform, so it obviously does not carry weapons. Moreover, another E-2D of VAW-117 was photographed with a drone kill marking on its fuselage during Northern Edge 2025 in August. The E-2D Hawkeye, the Navy’s Eye in the SkyThe E-2D Advanced Hawkeye (AHE) represents the latest evolution in the E-2 series, which has been the backbone of U.S. Navy’s airborne early warning and battle management capabilities for decades. CVW-9 consists of nine squadrons flying the F-35C Lightning II, F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, E-2D Hawkeye, C-2 Greyhound, and MH-60R/S Sea Hawk.