#hawker siddeley harrier

[all-action-all-picture]

1974 ad for the Hawker Siddeley Harrier model kit from Matchbox. 1:72nd scale.

[usafphantom2]

Timed exposure shot of a BAE Systems FA2 Sea Harrier landing at night on to the deck of HMS Illustrious, on patrol in the Arabian Gulf. June 2008.

@ron_eisele via x

[captain-price-unofficially]

Aerial view of Tiger-class light cruiser HMS Blake (C99) with a Hawker Siddeley Harrier overhead

[dangerousthingobservation]

Aviation Photo #0999370: Hawker Siddeley Harrier T8 - UK - Navy

Photo taken at Yeovilton (YEO / EGDY) in England, United Kingdom on January 11, 2006.

[viktorviolettaenterprises]

STOVL Fighters Collection DOWNLOAD

At the end of 1950s, the engineers had just an idea of delivering the aircraft even without a runway. Then in the beginning of 1960s, some tests conducted to test the capability of STOVL (Short Take-Off Vertical Landing) or in other word, a possibility of vertical movement of the fixed-wing aircraft, began with the "Flying bunk" in1959. Then the Hawker Siddeley Limited in Britain proposed a concept named "P1127 Kestrel" as a prototype of the VTOL fighter. Then this concept acepted and in 1969, the production of Harrier GR1 had begun. This aircraft was intended to be in use for Royal Air Force, but the Royal Navy also got their own version of FRS1 years later. These Harriers sought it's first battle experience in Falklands War in 1982 when these Harriers brought down some of the Argentine's air capability without any losses. The last of the Harrier production was in GR9 variant which subsequently substituted by the latest F-35B by the Royal Air Force.

McDonnell-Douglas AV-8B Harrier II

The USMC was also seeking the aircraft that suits for the amphibious mission. After the success of the Harrier FRS1 and GR3 variants in the Falklands War, in 1985 the USMC proposed an inquiry to acquire some of these aircrafts, with also stated that these aircrafts should be manufactured in the United States. Then BAe Industries licensed the Harrier to the McDonnell-Douglas company . Also this aircraft met the service within the Royal Spanish Navy in 1987. Several missions has been done by AV-8Bs including Gulf War, Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Libyan Crisis.

Lockheed Martin F-35B

The STOVL variant of F-35 Thunderbolt which it's STOVL technology derived from Yak-141 VTOL system, which sold to the Lockheed Martin in 1992, which emphasizes the vector exhaust and a fan in the middle of the aircraft. Also the most wanted aircraft in action of this century. The F-35B is the short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) variant of the aircraft. Similar in size to the A variant, the B sacrifices about a third of the A variant's fuel volume to accommodate the SDLF. This variant is limited to 7 g. Unlike other variants, the F-35B has no landing hook. The "STOVL/HOOK" control instead engages conversion between normal and vertical flight.The F-35B is capable of Mach 1.6 (1,976 km/h) and can perform vertical and/or short take-off and landing (V/STOL)

[schleyer]

kill them with kindness? WRONG! Hawker Siddeley Harrier jump jet equipped with BL755 Cluster Munitions

[s-n-arly]

I'm curious if this maneuverability is what inspired Hawker Siddeley Aviation to name its AV-8A / AV-8C the Harrier.

@ta2020photography

"Female Northern Harrier performs acrobatic maneuver."

[sjvllsblog]

GR3 Hawker Siddeley “Harrier” at Belize International Airport

[batgodofredo]

Royal Navy 800 Squadron Hawker Siddeley Sea Harrier FRS.1 -1981-

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 4.1 (after 1950)

1954 – United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower authorizes the creation of the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. 1955 – The EOKA rebellion against the British Empire begins in Cyprus, with the goal of unifying with Greece. 1960 – The TIROS-1 satellite transmits the first television picture from space. 1964 – The British Admiralty, War Office and Air Ministry are replaced by a unified Defence Council of the United Kingdom. 1969 – The Hawker Siddeley Harrier, the first operational fighter aircraft with Vertical/Short Takeoff and Landing capabilities, enters service with the Royal Air Force. 1970 – President Richard Nixon signs the Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act into law. 1970 – A Royal Air Maroc Sud Aviation Caravelle crashes near Berrechid, Morocco, killing 61. 1971 – Bangladesh Liberation War: The Pakistan Army massacre more than a thousand people in Keraniganj Upazila, Bangladesh. 1973 – Project Tiger, a tiger conservation project, is launched in the Jim Corbett National Park, India. 1974 – The Local Government Act 1972 of England and Wales comes into effect. 1976 – Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak found Apple Computer, Inc. 1979 – Iran becomes an Islamic republic by a 99% vote, officially overthrowing the Shah. 1984 – Singer Marvin Gaye is shot to death by his father in his home in Arlington Heights, Los Angeles, California. 1986 – Communist Party of Nepal (Mashal) cadres attack a number of police stations in Kathmandu, seeking to incite a popular rebellion. 1989 – Margaret Thatcher's new local government tax, the Community Charge (commonly known as the "poll tax"), is introduced in Scotland. 1993 – NASCAR racer Alan Kulwicki is killed in a plane crash near the Tri-Cities Regional Airport in Blountville, Tennessee. 1997 – Comet Hale–Bopp is seen passing at perihelion. 1999 – Nunavut is established as a Canadian territory carved out of the eastern part of the Northwest Territories. 2001 – An EP-3E United States Navy surveillance aircraft collides with a Chinese People's Liberation Army Shenyang J-8 fighter jet. The Chinese pilot ejected but is subsequently lost. The Navy crew makes an emergency landing in Hainan, China and is detained. 2001 – Former President of Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Slobodan Milošević surrenders to police special forces, to be tried on war crimes charges. 2001 – Same-sex marriage becomes legal in the Netherlands, the first contemporary country to allow it. 2004 – Google launches its Email service Gmail. 2006 – Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) of the Government of the United Kingdom is enforced, but later merged into National Crime Agency on 7 October 2013. 2011 – After protests against the burning of the Quran turn violent, a mob attacks a United Nations compound in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, resulting in the deaths of thirteen people, including eight foreign workers. 2016 – The 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh conflict begins along the Nagorno-Karabakh Line of Contact.

[crazygadgetshere]

Harrier Fuel Probe, Tanks & Ferry Wing Tips Black Dog Released

Black Dog Releases New 1:48 Scale Hawker Siddeley Harrier Accessories Black Dog has released a new set of 1:48 scale accessories for the Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR.1/3, including a fuel probe, 190-gallon tanks, and ferry wing tips. These accessories are perfect for adding realism to your Harrier model. interesting and technical information: The accessories are for the Hawker Siddeley Harrier…

[all-action-all-picture]

Battle Modern Master Plan No. 10 - Harrier Jump Jet.

From Battle Picture Weekly No. 67 cover dated 12 June 1976. Treasury of British Comics.

[usafphantom2]

Royal Navy FA2 Sea Harrier takes off from the HMS Illustrious during exercises..

@CcibChris via X

[airlpane15]

10. The Harrier Jump Jet

This is an iconic aircraft renowned for its unique vertical takeoff and landing capabilities. Developed in the 1960s by British manufacturer Hawker Siddeley, it served as a game-changer in military aviation.

The jet employs vector thrust technology, enabling it to hover and maneuver with exceptional agility. Its versatility makes it suitable for various roles, including ground-attack, reconnaissance, and air defense. The Harrier has seen action in several conflicts, notably the Falklands War and Gulf War, earning a reputation for its effectiveness and adaptability.

Though various versions have been produced, the Harrier remains an emblematic symbol of innovative engineering and its impact on modern aviation is still felt today.

[skyfire85]

XP972, one of the four P.1127 prototypes of what became the Harrier.

[skyfire85]

-A Hawker Siddeley AV-8A atached to VMA-231 “Ace of Spades”, wearing a rare white and green camo pattern. | Photo: PH1 Rober Bennett

Flightline: 69 - Hawker Siddeley Harrier I

After the cancellation of the P.1154, the RAF went back to the drawing board, and issued a new requirement for a subsonic V/STOL strike aircraft. Hawker Siddeley advanced an upgraded Kestrel, designated P.1127 (RAF), and awarded a contract for six preproduction Harrier GR.1 in 1965, with the first taking flight on 31 August 1966. The RAF ordered 60 production Harriers in early 1967, which officially entered service in 1969. During the same year, Hawker Siddeley formed a partnership with McDonnell Douglas to produce aircraft for the US, though, through that decision was later reversed and the USMC’s order of 102 AV-8A and 8 TAV-8A trainers were produced on Hawker Siddeley’s Kingston upon Thames and Dunsfold factories.

-RAF Harrier GR.1 (the best looking version, don’t @ me) fitted with SNEB rocket pods. | Photo: Mike Freer - Touchdown-aviation

The P.1127/Kestrel KGA.1 and Harrier GR.1/AV-8A are broadly similar in appearance, but the two designs share less than 10% commonality. The Harrier was powered by the more powerful Pegasus 6 engine, and new air intakes with auxiliary blow-in doors were added to produce the required airflow at low speed. Its wing was modified to increase area, and the landing gear was strengthened. Several hardpoints for weapons or drop-tanks were installed, two under each wing and one underneath the fuselage, and provisions for two 30 mm (1.2 in) ADEN cannon gun pods were added to the underside of the fuselage. The Harrier was outfitted with updated avionics to replace the basic systems used in the Kestrel: a navigational-attack system incorporating an inertial navigation system, originally for the P.1154, was installed and information was presented to the pilot by a head-up display and a moving map display. USMC Harriers were further differentiated in that they were built without magnesium components, which were subject to corrosion. They were also fitted with American radios and IFF avionics, and the outer wing pylons were wired to carry AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles for self-defense.

-A USMC AV-8A from VMA-513 (The Flying Nightmares) preparing to land at NAS Whiting Field in 1982. | Photo: USMC

Development of the Harrier continued, with the GR.3 variant being introduced in the early 1980s. Featuring an uprated Pegasus engine, chisel nose incorporating a laser tracker, upgraded avionics and ECM equipment, 62 were converted from earlier GR.1/.1As, while an additional 40 new aircraft were built. In the US, the AV-8As were upgraded to AV-8C specs, mainly involving strengthening the structure and replacing earlier models of the Pegasus engine. During air-combat trials against USMC Phantoms, the Harrier’s pilots developed the concept of “viffing”: rotating the nozzles forward during a turn, which allowed the AV-8s to engage faster targets at close range.

-An RAF GR.3 at Stanley Airport in 1984. | Photo: Petebutt

In the early 1970's the Royal Navy faced the cancellation of the CVA carriers, which would have replaced the Centaur- and Audacious-class full-deck carriers, and as a result began to seek a V/STOL replacement for its Sea Vixen and Phantom FG.1 fighters. The answer came as a result of RN Lt. Cdr. D.R. Taylor’s M.Phil. thesis which postulated that an angled ramp would allow a V/STOL aircraft like the Harrier to take off on smaller decks while still carrying a combat load. Initial testing with various ramp angles was carried out at RAE Bedford, using the two-seat Harrier demonstrator G-VTOL during 1976 and ‘77, and proved that the more the ramp was angled the more of a performance boost was added. As a result, the RN commissioned the new Invincible-class light carriers, which incorporated the newly-christened ski-jump deck. To fly from these ships, Hawker Siddeley developed the Sea Harrier FRS.1.

-A lineup of Sea Harriers (In this camo, the second best looking Harrier. Again, don’t @ me) in 1980. | Photo: Mike Freer - Touchdown-aviation

Based on the upgraded Harrier GR.3, the Sea Harrier was further modified with a raised bubble canopy for improved visibility and a longer nose to incorporate the Ferranti Blue Fox radar. As with the American AV-8A, different alloys were used to prevent corrosion.

FRS.1 and GR.3 Harriers were soon pressed into service during the Falklands Islands War. Sea Harriers operated from the aircraft carriers HMS Invincible and HMS Hermes, acting as the primary air defense, shooting down 20 Argentine aircraft. The RAF’s GR.3s, meanwhile, were operating from two commandeered merchant container ships, Atlantic Conveyor and Atlantic Causeway, which were modified with temporary flight decks. Ten more GR.3s operated from the Hermes.

-Newsweek coverage of the Falklands conflict, showing HMS Hermes carrying Harrier FRS.1. | Screenshot: Newsweek magazine, 19 April 1982.

Along with the US and UK, Spain operated a force of ten Harriers, based on the USMC’s AV-8A, known as the VA-1 Matador, and the Indian Navy ordered a force of 30 (25 fighters and five trainers) Sea Harrier FRS.51 to operate from INS Vikrant (ex-HMS Hercules) and NS Viraat (ex-HMS Hermes).

-An AV-8S (VA-1) Matador of the Spanish Navy. | Photo: PH2 James Bishop

-INS Vikrant circa 1984 carrying a unique complement of Sea Harriers, Sea Hawks, Allouette & Sea King helicopters and Alize ASW aircraft. | Photo: Admiral Arun Prakash (ret.)

The GR.1, GR.3, AV-8A, -8C and Sea Harrier FRS.1 were all retired in the 1980s, and the Spanish Navy sold their VA-1 Matadors to the Thai Royal Navy in 1998. The Thai Harriers were retired in 2008, while the Indian FRS.51 were replaced in 2016 by MiG-29K aircraft. 

But the story doesn’t end there....