page_title: VAW-125
section_title: 2000s
hierarchical_section_title: VAW-125 / Squadron History / 2000s
caption_attribution_description: NORFOLK (March 20, 2014) An E-2D Hawkeye assigned to the Tiger Tails of Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron (VAW) 125 flies over Naval Station Norfolk. VAW-125 provides airborne early warning and command and control to Carrier Air Wing 1 and is assigned aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71).
context_page_description: Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 125, known as the "Torch Bearers" or "Tigertails", was established on 1 October 1968, at Naval Air Station Norfolk. The squadron's initial supporting command was Carrier Air Wing Three deploying aboard USS Saratoga.
  The squadron is equipped with the E-2 Hawkeye. It was the first east coast squadron with E-2B's in 1968, among the first to operate the E-2C in 1975, receiving the E-2C 2000 in its first operational year in 2003, and the first unit to operate the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye in 2014.
context_section_description: Within hours of the September 11 attacks, squadron personnel were embarked at sea, leaving NS Norfolk to deploy on USS George Washington to support Operation Noble Eagle. Squadron aircraft flew numerous command and control missions in the New York City vicinity in the days following the attacks as commercial air traffic slowly resumed. During this cruise, the squadron surpassed a 32-year Class "A" mishap-free milestone with over 64,000 flight hours.
  In April 2003, the squadron became the first East Coast squadron to transition to the E-2C Hawkeye 2000, which boasted improved electrical and vapor cycle systems, mission computer and display stations, and Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC).  The squadron participated in the Operational Evaluation of the AN/USG-3 airborne node of the Navy's net-centric CEC sensor fusion system.
  While deployed aboard USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Central Persian Gulf, North Arabian Sea, and Western Indian Ocean VAW-125 played roles in the US War on Terror, Operation Enduring Freedom, and operations off the coast of Somalia.
caption: VAW-125 E-2D Hawkeye flies over NAS Norfolk
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