Northrop says scout plane on track for 2010

Northrop Grumman Corp. said the E-2D plane, the next-generation version of the E-2C Hawkeye surveillance aircraft, is "on track" to enter service in 2010 for the U.S. Navy and that the company hopes to also sell the plane to the United Arab Emirates.

The U.A.E. is the only country authorized by the U.S. government to use the E2-D and talks are ongoing to make the airplane available to other countries, said John Brooks, president of Northrop Grumman International, today at the Idex International Defense Exhibition and Conference in Abu Dhabi.

The Hawkeye has been the Navy's primary surveillance and patrol aircraft since its first use in 1973. The planes have been continually upgraded to keep pace with new technology since then. The first production E-2D is set to be delivered starting in the fourth quarter of 2010. The E-2D project is "meeting every milestone," Brooks said.

The company may provide the UAE with the current E-2C aircraft until the new plane is complete, Jerry Spruill, director of Northrop's airborne early warning international programs, said in an interview at Idex.

Los Angeles-based Northrop, which has operations in Rolling Meadows, is competing with other companies to supply the U.A.E. with airborne early warning aircraft. Both Northrop and the U.A.E. declined to say when the UAE would choose a winner.