Tuesday, July 19, 2022

Sinking Exercise - RIMPAC 2022

Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2022 military forces from Australia, Canada, Malaysia and the U.S., fired upon and sunk the decommissioned ex-USS Rodney M. Davis (FFG 60), July 12, during a sinking exercise (SINKEX) to gain proficiency in tactics, targeting and live firing against a surface target at sea. Twenty-six nations, 38 ships, four submarines, more than 170 aircraft and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC from June 29 to Aug. 4 in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California.

The world's largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world's oceans.

Wednesday, July 6, 2022

E-2 Hawkeye: The Hummer You Don’t Mess With

The Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye is the Navy's all-weather, carrier-based tactical battle management airborne early warning, command and control aircraft. The E-2 is a twin engine, five crewmember, high-wing turboprop aircraft with a 24-foot diameter radar rotodome attached to the upper fuselage. Designed in the 1950s, the E-2 first flew in 1960 before entering service in 1964. The E-2 has been in production, in one variant or another, continuously since 1960 – giving the E-2 the longest production run of any carrier-based aircraft ever.

The E-2, which uses twin turbo-prop engines, also has earned the nickname “Hummer”, due to the distinct humming sound the prop engines make – which is easily discernible from the roar of a carrier’s jet engine fleet. 

In addition, the sequel of new movie “Top Gun: Maverick”, featuring E-2D Advanced Hawkeye, even for a brief moment, makes a strong impression.