Dubbed Sea Harrier, it contained no magnesium parts, had a raised cockpit for better all-around visibility, and incorporated more panel space for avionics.
Unlike the previous GR-1s, which still served with the RAF in their ground attack and fighter role, the Sea Harrier was to fill the role of air defense interceptor to protect the fleet. As desperately as the navy fought to keep its aircraft carriers, the liberal factions of Parliament fought to ax them. Although a Harrier does not require the massive deck space of a conventional aircraft carrier, it does require, when weighted down the fuel and ordnance, a sufficient area to perform a running takeoff because it consumes too much fuel in the act of vertical takeoff to perform a normal mission.
By , the navy had lost the battle — and the carriers. In the opinion of the Admiralty, this one ship would not suffice. Plans for minicarriers, Harrier carriers, and though-deck cruisers, came and went over the next two years, but only one, the HMS Invincible a minicarrier , was constructed. And because of its size, only a handful of Harriers could operate from its deck. Things were looking very bleak for British naval aviation when a bit of salvation came in the form of a paper, written by Lieutenant Commander Doug Taylor, that came to the attention of the Admiralty.
In it, Taylor described the advantages of launching Harriers with the aid of an inclined ramp or ski jump. With this system, it would be possible to carry more aircraft aboard ship because less flight deck would be needed for launching purposes.
The idea was tested at the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Bedford by building such a ramp on a runway and successful launching a Sea Harrier. It was found during these tests that a Harrier carrying a 10,pound load could take off at half the speed and use less than one-third the distance needed when operating from a flat deck. Both the Hermes and Invincible were fitted with ski jump.
Its ability to operate off short stretches of roadway and open fields gives Harrier the unique capability of being stationed near the FEBA the Forward Edge of the Battle Area. This allows for a rapid response in answer to calls for air support and makes the Harrier a critical element in an air-land battle. Easily camouflaged and hidden or dispersed in wooded tree lines, Harriers can deploy where no other turbine-engine fighter or ground-attack jet can operate.
The Harrier has two natural enemies, however: debris and birds. Debris — rocks, sticks and small objects stirred up by the downward jet blast — creates FOD, or Foreign Object Damage, on any aircraft with the power to stir it up. The Harrier, with its overly large intakes and vectored thrust nozzles, falls easy victim to debris ingested into the engine if care is not taken when taking off or landing. Further, for an aircraft that often is required to fly just above treetop level, encountering a bird can be as fatal as receiving a cannon hit.
The bird penetrated the skin and entered the electronics by where it destroyed the inertial navigation system and other electronic devices. The pilots managed to return to base, and the aircraft was field repaired by simply deactivating the systems and taping a section of aluminum sheet over the hole.
Sea Harriers proved the fighter's abilities in air-to-air combat against what was considered a more potent enemy. While the GR-3s performed in a ground-attack role in support of the landing force, the FRS-1s defended the fleet against Argentine air attack. In this, they were greatly outmatched in both speed and firepower.
With the exception of the A-4, the Argentine pilots held the speed advantage over the slower mph Harriers. In air-to-air combat, the Harrier pilots only had one trick up their sleeves — a maneuver that could only be performed with vectored thrust.
Borrowing a technique developed by the U. Marines in the Av-8B the American version of the Harrier , the British Harrier pilots relied on a maneuver known as viffing, or vectoring in forward flight. Because of its high wing-loading, the Harrier is not as agile at high speed as are conventional fighters. But it does have one distinct advantage — its controllable-thrust nozzles. When enemy aircraft approaches from the rear in a dog-fight, the Harrier pilot at the most appropriate moment slams his thrust lever to the forward vertical thrust position and turns tightly away.
The Harrier, with the nozzles now pointed down and away from the aircraft, almost stops in midair. It then falls away as the pursuer blasts by, and then pulls up and becomes the hunter.
A more decisive factor favoring the Harriers in air-to-air combat over the Falkands was the damage done to Stanley Airport by an Avro Vulcan bomber on May 1, It prevented the Argentine jets from operating from the islands. Flying at maximum range from the Argentine mainland, they did not have enough fuel to engage in dogfights with the Harriers for any appreciable length of time. Carrying armament that ranged from 30mm pod-mounted Aden cannons and Matra 68mm rockets to iron bombs, Number One Squadron flew sortie after sortie against ground defenses.
None were shot down in air-to-air combat. Argentina, on the other hand, lost 31 aircraft to the Harrier in air combat with a further 30 destroyed on the ground by GR-3s.
Prior to May 1, many Argentines had dismissed the Harrier as a toy airplane. But their opinion changed after a number of encounters throughout the day. After several indecisive combats, first blood was drawn when Flt. Peter C. From that day on, the Argentines referred to dark gray Sea Harriers as La Muerta Negra black death and concentrated their efforts solely on avoiding or speeding through the deadly screen of Harriers in their effort to take out the British ships.
The Sea Harriers played a significant role in their ultimate failure. The Harriers had finally proven themselves. It is understood that the Royal Air Force will be trialling an innovative solution in order to find personnel for the new aircraft.
Congraulations and thank you for reading the whole article, this is just an April Fools Day joke. The article above is not true and if anyone is sharing this after the 1st of April, please do remind them of that fact. The purpose of this article, aside from our usual April Fools day joke, is to make the point that reading beyond the headline should be the norm every day, not just on the 1st of April.
Another April 1 cracker! Really incredible for a relatively rich country. Agree Klonkie. Five million people and an area the size of the UK, the Kiwis should have at least one squadron of fast jets.
Pound to a penny, somebody says it should be 36!. Yes Yes i heard about this along with the Ministry of Defense siphon of the Foreign Aid Budget to pay commentators on UK Defense Journal a retainer of up to several thousand pounds per comment due to the invaluable advice that has until now being offered up to them free. There are exceptions though , that other guy calling himself Sean is omitted due to the flaccidity of his past contributions thus far , he is simply going to be ignored.
Who left the afterburner on for more than 20 seconds! We Seriously miss a close combat aircraft, Typhoon and F35 are very high value aircraft, we need a lower cost well armed and armoured CAS aircraft.. It is unlikely even with the small defence pods being made for reaper, they could be used in contested airspace. Prove me wrong…please! Anyone who didnt secretly want this to be true is heartless!
Whilst were at it lets bring nack the sea king… I love seeing them flying round dorset! Actually NOT a bad idea considering the cut in numbers for the F The EX Navy Harriers are just sitting in the desert anyway and would be available. Sign in. Log into your account. Privacy Policy. Harriers will be replaced by the Joint Strike Fighter by the decade's end.
Mr Luff told parliament: "We have agreed the sale of the final 72 Harrier aircraft frames and associated parts which will be used as a major source of spares for the US Marine Corps Harrier AV-8B fleet of aircraft. The deal represented "a good deal both for UK taxpayers and the US government," he said. Critics say the decision to get rid of the Harriers along with the Ark Royal aircraft carrier leaves the UK without a carrier able to operate strike aircraft until The Harriers made their final flight last December.
The Ministry of Defence said cuts predating the SDSR meant the Harrier force was too small to carry out operations in Afghanistan whilst maintaining a contingent capability for operations such as Libya.
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