The Diplomat:
The Japanese government has greenlighted the purchase of nine E-2D Advanced Hawkeye (AHE) Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) aircraft from the United States, Japan’s Defense Minister, Takeshi Iwaya, said on October 12.
“The E-2C aircraft are expected to retire (…) in the coming 10 years, and thinking about the severe security environment, it is absolutely necessary to replace them with the E-2Ds, which have more capabilities,” Iwaya said during a press conference.
The U.S. Department of State approved the possible sale of the aircraft last month. The Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) maintains a fleet of 13 E-2C Hawkeyes and four E-767 aircraft as part of its Airborne Early Warning Wing. The E-2Cs are all slated to be phased out of the service by the late 2020s.
