The legendary Harrier Fighter Jet is being phased out. The Sea Harrier was withdrawn from service in 2006 and only the Royal Air Force continue to operate the aircraft with the Navy sharing these aircraft on the carriers within the Joint Force Harrier programme. All Harrier's are due to be replaced by the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter by 2014.I have seen the Harrier at Airshows and I absolutely love it.
The sustained deafening roar from the Rolls Royce Pegasus engine as the Harrier hovers in front of you is an experience you can never forget!Of all the experiments in the 1960's which saw the US, Russia and the UK attempt to build a vertical take off aircraft, only the UK Harrier design succeeded by going into mass production and it is also the only foreign designed aircraft adopted by the US Military.
The British Harrier has been proven in combat during its initial baptism of fire in the Falklands War in 1982.
Sea Harriers of the Royal Navy operated from the aircraft carriers HMS Invincible and HMS Hermes in their main role as fleet air defence whereas the Royal Air Force Harrier GR3 provided the main ground attack role.The Falklands War remains the largest Air and Naval combat engagement between modern military forces since the end of World War II
During the war Sea Harrier squadrons successfully shot down 21 Argentinian aircraft in air-to-air combat with no air-to-air losses.
The Argentine aircraft such as the French made Dassault Mirage III, Mirage V "Dagger" and the American A-4 Skyhawks although much faster than the subsonic Harrier, were still no match for the combination of the Harrier's maneuverability and the Sidewinder missile.Due to the Argentinian use of the deadly French Exocet anti-ship missile, the irreplaceable Royal Navy carriers HMS Hermes and HMS Invincible were deliberately stationed far from the Falklands Islands forcing the Harriers to fight at a long range. The Argentinians also had to fight the British forces at the limit of their range from the Argentinian mainland
since the runways on the Falklands were only suited to propeller driven aircraft. These circumstances in addition to the harsh environment on the South Atlantic made for a very unwelcome environment for all forces involved.During the 1990's the Harrier also flew missions over Bosnia and Kosovo where one aircraft was shot down by a SAM fired by the Army of Republika Srpska.
The Royal Air Force Harrier GR7 and GR9 continue to operate in Iraq and Afghanistan in the in ground attack and close air support roles.
The amazing little Harrier Jump Jet is going to be replaced by the next generation stealth capable fighter the F-35 Lightning II but I
for one hope that at least a few of the aircraft will be operationally preserved, I cannot Imagine a decent airshow without one.Cheers to "the Harrier!"
You can download some Hi Res Wallpapers of the awesome Harrier Jet Here >>>
