U.S. Central Command said planes just like the E-2D Hawkeye are in the Middle East right now as part of “Operation Epic Fury.” The company that makes the aircraft, Northrop Grumman, said this is the first time TV cameras have been inside the St. Augustine production facility to see this plane being assembled. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< It takes more than two years from start to finish to build one. The E-2D Hawkeye is a surveillance aircraft.