A Navy E-2C Hawkeye aircraft from Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron (VAW) 120 crashed at sea Aug. 15, while conducting operations on the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75).
Three aviators were aboard the aircraft. An air and sea search is being conducted by units from Harry S. Truman, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69), and the U.S. Coast Guard.
The identities of the crew are not being released at this time.
The aircraft crashed at approximately 11:00 p.m. following its launch from Harry S. Truman. The ship was approximately 150 miles southeast of the Virginia Capes conducting routine training operations.
The cause of the accident is under investigation.
VAW-120 is the east coast E-2C/C-2A Fleet Replacement Squadron based at Naval Station Norfolk and trains pilots and Naval flight officers in both aircraft before they are assigned to operational fleet squadrons.
The E-2C Hawkeye is a twin-engine turbo prop aircraft used for airborne command, control, and early warning. It normally carries a crew of five including two pilots and three NFOs.