VAW-121 Bluetails Island Patch — The Hawkeye Crew's Tropical Detachment Patch
The Bluetails see everything from 25,000 feet. On island DET, they see everything from sea level too.
Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 121 (VAW-121) — the 'Bluetails' — flies the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye from Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, as part of Carrier Air Wing 7 aboard USS George H.W. Bush. This island patch commemorates a tropical detachment — the kind of deployment or training evolution that takes Hawkeye crews away from the carrier and into an island environment for training, exercises, or operational support. The E-2 Hawkeye community regularly deploys to locations throughout the Caribbean, Pacific, and Mediterranean, operating from shore-based airfields as well as from the flight deck of the carrier. Island detachments provide Hawkeye crews with exposure to different operating environments, international airspace, and the kind of overwater flying that builds the proficiency needed for the airborne early warning mission. The Bluetails have deployed throughout the world as the eyes of the carrier strike group, and this island patch marks one of those deployments — a piece of the squadron's story from a tropical location.
Perfect For: VAW-121 Bluetails aircrew and maintainers, E-2 Hawkeye community members, island detachment participants, CVW-7 personnel, and anyone who has deployed with the Bluetails.
