harrier Archives - Felix's Gaming Pages

Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR3

This Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR3 was on display at RAF Cosford.

Famous throughout the world as the first jet fighter capable of vertical take off and landing, the Harrier was utilised by the Royal Air Force as a ground attack and reconnaissance aircraft in the Close Air Support role.

The Harrier GR3 was a development of the Harrier GR1, being fitted with improved attack sensors, electronic countermeasures and a more powerful engine over the GR1.

The simplicity and flexibility inherent in the Harrier design proved their worth in service in Germany. In time of war the Harrier was to be deployed away from established airfields, which were vulnerable to attack. Instead it was to be operated from short, rough strips of ground and hidden in camouflaged ‘hides’, from which it would attack the enemy’s approaching armoured formations.

These qualities came into their own during the Falklands War. RAF Harriers were deployed to the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Hermes, as part of the Task Force sent to recapture the Falklands Islands. The Harrier GR3 performed attack sorties from the aircraft carrier, and later from basic landing strips on the islands, often in conditions that would have grounded conventional aircraft.

The concept of a high performance fighter aircraft being able to take off and land vertically was almost unbelievable until the Harrier was developed. The scientific, technological and engineering challenges which were overcome in order to achieve the remarkable performance enjoyed by this aircraft marks it out as one of the most special machines.

Hawker P 1127 VSTOL Experimental Aircraft

This is the Hawker P.1127 VSTOL Experimental Aircraft, serial number XP831 (the first prototype), by Hawker Siddeley Aircraft Company Limited, British, 1960, on display at the Science Museum.

The Hawker P.1127 and the Hawker Siddeley Kestrel FGA.1 are the British experimental and development aircraft that led to the Hawker Siddeley Harrier, the first vertical and/or short take-off and landing (V/STOL) jet fighter-bomber.

Development began in 1957, taking advantage of the Bristol Engine Company’s choice to invest in the creation of the Pegasus vectored-thrust engine. Testing began in July 1960 and by the end of the year the aircraft had achieved both vertical take-off and horizontal flight. The test program also explored the possibility of use upon aircraft carriers, landing on HMS Ark Royal in 1963. The first three aircraft crashed during testing, one at the 1963 Paris Air Show.

Improvements to future development aircraft, such as swept wings and more powerful Pegasus engines, led to the development of the Kestrel. The Kestrel was evaluated by the Tri-partite Evaluation Squadron, made up of military pilots from the United Kingdom, the United States, and West Germany. Later flights were conducted by the U.S. military and NASA.

Related work on a supersonic aircraft, the Hawker Siddeley P.1154, was cancelled in 1965. As a result, the P.1127 (RAF), a variant more closely based on the Kestrel, was ordered into production that year, and named Harrier – the name originally intended for the P.1154 – in 1967. The Harrier served with the UK and several nations, often as a carrier-based aircraft.

P.1127 XP831 is on display at The Science Museum in London.

British Aerospace Harrier GR9A

The Harrier II resulted from a collaborative partnership between McDonnell Douglas and British Aerospace to produce a second-generation Harrier based on the McDonnell Douglas AV-8B.

The project that eventually led to the AV-8B’s creation started in the early 1970s as a cooperative effort between the United States and United Kingdom, aimed at addressing the operational inadequacies of the first-generation Hawker Siddeley Harrier.

Because of budgetary constraints, the UK abandoned the project in 1975. Following the UK’s withdrawal, McDonnell Douglas extensively redesigned the earlier AV-8A Harrier to create the AV-8B. While retaining the general layout of its predecessor, the aircraft incorporates a new, larger composite wing with an additional hardpoint on each side, an elevated cockpit, a redesigned fuselage and other structural and aerodynamic refinements. The aircraft is powered by an upgraded version of the Pegasus.

The UK, through British Aerospace, re-joined the improved Harrier project as a partner in 1981, giving it a significant work-share in the project.

The Harrier II was derived from the AV-8B and incorporated an advanced wing design, improved avionics and increased bomb and missile-carrying capacity.

RAF variants started as the Harrier GR5, and were later upgraded as the GR7 and GR9.

This Harrier GR9A was on display at RAF London.

Under the Joint Force Harrier organisation, both the RAF and RN operated the Harrier II under the RAF’s Air Command, including deployments on board the navy’s Invincible-class aircraft carriers.

The Harrier II participated in numerous conflicts, making significant contributions in combat theatres such as Kosovo, Iraq, and Afghanistan. The type’s main function was as a platform for air interdiction and close air support missions; the Harrier II was also used for power projection and reconnaissance duties. The Harrier II served alongside the Sea Harrier in Joint Force Harrier.

The RAF used them for attack and close air support duties in conflicts such as Kosovo, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

There is also a BAe Harrier GR9A on display at RAF Cosford.

There is a BAe Harrier GR9A at the Imperial War Museum in London.

BAe Harrier GR9A – RAF Cosford

This BAe Harrier GR9A was on display at RAF Cosford.

The Harrier, informally referred to as the Jump Jet, is the famous family of British-designed military jet aircraft capable of vertical/short take-off and landing (V/STOL) operations. The Harrier family is the only truly successful design of this type from the many that arose in the 1960s.

There are four main versions of the Harrier family: Hawker Siddeley Harrier, British Aerospace Sea Harrier, Boeing/BAE Systems AV-8B Harrier II, and BAE Systems/Boeing Harrier II. The Hawker Siddeley Harrier is the first generation-version and is also known as the AV-8A Harrier. The Sea Harrier is a naval strike/air defence fighter. The AV-8B and BAE Harrier II are the US and British variants respectively of the second generation Harrier aircraft. Between 1969 and 2003, 824 Harrier variants were delivered, including remanufactured aircraft.

Historically the Harrier was developed to operate from ad-hoc facilities such as car parks or forest clearings, avoiding the need for large air bases vulnerable to tactical nuclear weapons. Later the design was adapted for use from aircraft carriers.

Following an approach by the Bristol Engine Company in 1957 that they were planning a directed thrust engine, Hawker Aircraft came up with a design for an aeroplane that could meet the NATO specification for a “Light Tactical Support Fighter”. The resultant Hawker P.1127 was ordered as a prototype and flew in 1960.

Development continued with nine evaluation aircraft, the Hawker Siddeley Kestrel; These started flying in 1964 and were assessed by the “Tri-partite Evaluation Squadron” which consisted of British, US and German pilots, and several flew and are preserved in the United States. The RAF ordered a modified P.1127/Kestrel as the Harrier GR.1 in 1966, with most converted to GR.1A and ultimately GR.3 status in the 1970s with more powerful engines. These and new-build GR3s operated with the RAF until 1994, and a number survive in museums around the world as well as frequent use as ‘gate guards’ at MoD establishments.

The British Aerospace Sea Harrier is a naval V/STOL jet fighter, reconnaissance and attack aircraft, a development of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier. The first version entered service with the Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm in April 1980 as the Sea Harrier FRS.1, and was informally known as the ‘Shar’. The upgraded Sea Harrier FA2 entered service in 1993. It was withdrawn from Royal Navy service in March 2006. The Sea Harrier FRS Mk.51 remains in active service with the Indian Navy.

The Harrier was extensively redeveloped by McDonnell Douglas and British Aerospace (now parts of Boeing and BAE Systems respectively), leading to the Boeing/BAE Systems AV-8B Harrier II. This is a family of second-generation V/STOL jet multi-role aircraft, including the British Aerospace-built Harrier GR5/GR7/GR9, which entered service in the mid-1980s. The AV-8B is primarily used for light attack or multi-role tasks, typically operated from small aircraft carriers. Versions are used by several NATO countries, including the Spanish and Italian Navies, and the United States.

The BAE Systems/Boeing Harrier II is a modified version of the AV-8B Harrier II that was used by the RAF and the Royal Navy until December 2010, when they were all retired from operational service due to defence cuts in favour of maintaining the remaining Tornado fleet, and stored serviceable at RAF Cottesmore. At the end of November 2011, the UK Government announced the sale of 72 remaining Harrier Airframes to the US Marine Corps for spares to support their AV-8B fleet, with the remaining two others being allocated to museums, including the airframe now at Cosford.

There is a BAe Harrier GR9A at the Imperial War Museum in London.

BAe Harrier GR9

This BAe Harrier GR9 was hanging from the ceiling of the Imperial War Museum in London.

The British Aerospace Harrier II is a second-generation vertical/short takeoff and landing (V/STOL) jet aircraft used previously by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and, between 2006 and 2010, the Royal Navy (RN). The aircraft was the latest development of the Harrier Jump Jet family, and was derived from the McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II. Initial deliveries of the Harrier II were designated in service as Harrier GR5; subsequently upgraded airframes were redesignated accordingly as GR7 and GR9.

The GR9 was developed via the Joint Update and Maintenance Programme (JUMP), which significantly upgraded the Harrier fleet’s avionics, communications systems, and weapons capabilities during scheduled periods of maintenance in an incremental manner.

The aircraft on display was delivered as a GR5 in 1992 and was subsequently upgraded to a GR7 and then a GR9. It saw service in Iraq, Kosovo and Afghanistan. It was damaged in 2010 in the USA, before being declared as scrap. In 2012 it was offered for sale to the IWM.

Imperial War Museum London

A few years ago I visited the Imperial War Museum in London. In the main atrium are a range of aircraft and missiles.

This is the view from the back of the hall, I posted photos back in July of the view from the front.

Standing tall on the right if a V2 missile. The V2 was the world’s first long range guided ballistic missile. he missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was developed during the Second World War in Germany as a “vengeance weapon”, assigned to attack Allied cities as retaliation for the Allied bombings against German cities.

There is also a Spitfire. The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. There is also a BAE Harrier GR.9 in the background.

Imperial War Museum

A few years ago I visited the Imperial War Museum in London.

In the main atrium are a range of aircraft and missiles. Standing tall on the left if a V2 missile. The V2 was the world’s first long range guided ballistic missile. he missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was developed during the Second World War in Germany as a “vengeance weapon”, assigned to attack Allied cities as retaliation for the Allied bombings against German cities.

In the atrium is a V1 Doodlebug or flying bomb. The V1 was an early cruise missile and the only production aircraft to use a pulsejet for power.

There is also a Spitfire. The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II.

And a BAE Harrier GR.9.