After six decades of faithful service, an aviation legend has officially reached the end of an era.

On June 25, 2026, the legendary C-2A Greyhound made its final-ever catapult launch and arrested landing aboard the USS Nimitz (CVN-68), bringing the U.S. Navy’s fixed-wing Carrier On-board Delivery (COD) mission to a close after 60 remarkable years.

Since entering service in 1966, the Greyhound has been the lifeline of America’s aircraft carriers—delivering sailors, mail, critical spare parts, medical supplies, and mission-essential cargo across the world’s oceans. Built from the same family as the E-2 Hawkeye, the C-2A became one of the most dependable aircraft ever to serve naval aviation, completing thousands of carrier landings in some of the most demanding conditions imaginable.

For this historic farewell mission, two C-2A Greyhounds from Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 40 “Rawhides” (VRC-40) transported senior Navy leaders during FLEETEX 250 before launching from the carrier deck one final time. The iconic steam catapult launch and arrested recovery—hallmarks of fixed-wing carrier logistics—are now officially history.

The mission now passes to the CMV-22B Osprey, a revolutionary tiltrotor aircraft capable of vertical takeoffs and landings. Unlike the Greyhound, the CMV-22B doesn’t require catapults or arresting wires, allowing it to deliver cargo and personnel directly to ships throughout a carrier strike group. It also brings longer range, modern communications, and the ability to transport the massive Pratt & Whitney F135 engine for the F-35C Lightning II internally—a capability the C-2A never had.

Although the Greyhound will continue flying for a few more months before its final retirement later this year, June 25 marks the end of one of the most iconic chapters in U.S. Naval Aviation history. It also marks the final time a fixed-wing aircraft performed the Carrier On-board Delivery mission using a catapult launch and arrested landing, closing a historic chapter that began in the 1960s.