Three E-2C Hawkeyes assigned to VAW-124 had their engines swapped out just days before they left for a cruise aboard USS George H.W. Bush after it was discovered that the powerplants had been given a wrong type of lubricant.
By U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jonathan Snyder [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
Naval Air Force Atlantic spokesman Mike Maus told The Virginian-Pilot that the “damage occurred over a period of time and it involved the use of a lubricant not approved or specified for these engines.”
An initial assessment places the damage at $2 million. But spokesperson Cmdr. Dave Hecht said the figure will eventually be lower as the estimate was done before a full assessment.