Postage Stamp Collection PS53791

Postage Stamp Collection PS53791 is a 1/145 scale diecast model of the Grumman E-2C Hawkeye, tail code NE/600 of  Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 166 (VAW-116) “Sun Kings”, Carrier Air Wing 2 (CVW-2), US Navy deployed aboard the USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63), circa January 1984

VAW-116

Airborne Command & Control Squadron 116 (VAW-116) “Sun Kings” is a US Navy unit that is currently part of Carrier Air Wing 17 (CVW-17) and deploys aboard the USS Nimitz (CVN-68), flying the E-2C Hawkeye 2000 aircraft. VAW-116 is home-based at Naval Base Ventura County, California, USA. VAW-116 was established on April 20, 1967, and equipped with the E-2A Hawkeye.

Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye

The E-2 Hawkeye is an American twin-engine, all-weather, carrier-capable tactical airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft. It first flew on October 21, 1960, and entered service in January 1964, making its combat debut during the Vietnam War.

The E-2 Hawkeye is the first aircraft designed exclusively for the AEW mission and can perform civil and military air traffic control. Designed for the US Navy, it features a 7.3-meter (24-foot) diameter rotating radar dome mounted above the fuselage, which houses the radar and identification friend or foe (IFF) systems antennas.

Other operators of the Hawkeye include Egypt, France, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Singapore and Taiwan.

The crew comprises five members: a pilot, a co-pilot, a combat information centre officer, an air control officer, and a radar operator.
The E-2C model has two Allison/Rolls-Royce T56 turboprop engines, which are wing-mounted and drive four-bladed propellers. From 2004 onwards, it has utilised eight-bladed digitally controlled scimitar propellers.