25 years ago I was a 20yo Marine on the USS Wasp watching the Harriers come and go. Those jets were already as old as I was then. Amazing to see them still putting the work in. A classic airframe.
The f16 entered service in 1980, that's 44 years ago, the f15 entered service in 1976 that's 48 years ago, they are both still in service. The harrier entered service in 1971, 53 years ago.
@@SE-tc3cr The B-52 bomber entered service in 1959, and it's still flying to this day -- that's an incredible 65 years ago! Not only that, but with the Rolls Royce engine refit, the "BUFFS" will be flying well into the 2050s...!!!
To me this aircraft is as iconic as Concord. It was totally groundbreaking and so far ahead of its time. It proved itself in The Falklands war, neat trick if you can suddenly decelerate against much faster jets that can't. The thrust vectoring is genius.
@@teddypicker8799 Sure those Sidewinder AIM-9L "Limas" were a technological leap but I see far too many Americans trying to say that means the Harrier was really nothing special which is patently untrue. Great planes, great pilots with top tactics and new weapons altogether did the trick.
This aircraft is a unique icon, in its own league. Its also an example of what the British aircraft industry was capable of, which sadly is lost today.
They were retired at least 10 years too early ,Britain has a habit of retiring kit before the replacement is ready . It's like cancelling your house insurance for a couple of years to save money, then keeping your fingers crossed and hoping for the best !
And as a kid, one hovered in the dock in front of me at one of the Chatham Navy Days. Not entirely sure if (40 years later) my hearing is quite back yet.
Yes we should, we don't have the budget of the US, the harrier was/is a great airplane but it did have its limitations, US now just use it for ground support, the F35 is an advancement of the harrier built for today and the future, with much better avionics speed and weapons not mention stealth capabilities.
@@markhammond9527 "we dont have the budget" you realise not only is the F35 more expensive than the Harrier, its also got a substantially higher operating cost from pilot training all the way to fuel/maintainence/ordanance costs. Its been proven time and time again that having one system to rule all never ends well in the long run for multiple factors (like cost/deployement) imagine deploying an F35 for a given role which is substantially higher in costs/ordanance costs when you could simply deploy a cheaper Harrier to do a similar job. Ill use the A10 during Afghanistan conflict, imagine if they replaced the A10 with something substantially more expensive but still does the "same role" financially thats stupid from a military perspective. I dont disagree the F35 is better but better isnt always "better" not when you factor in costs. I still would keep Harriers in service for those cheaper "roles" assuming they ever happen this way it saves your more expensive Jets like the F35 and its pilots. And it should also be noted, Harriers were designed to be taking off from virtually anywhere (forrests, FARPs etc.) I'de love to F35s take that role even with its VTOL capabilities, again when you factor in cost and deployement its just not going to happen.
If we still had them, at least we'd have something of our own to put on our carriers. Them plus Gannets would ( sadly) be better than we could now field...
The British Harrier.. what an absolute icon. What this aircraft can do is phenomenal. I love that shape and seeing them take off and land. A design masterpiece.. easily my favourite fighter jet.
I grew up living between RAF Wittering and RAF Cottesmore. Tornados to my left, Harriers to my right. The Harriers had such a distinctive roar. Ahhh, the days when we had an airforce to be proud of .
To be clear at 1:27 the US Navy does not operate Harriers. It's the United States Marine Corps that operates the Harriers from US Navy amphibious assault ships. And yes, technically the USMC is part of the Department of the Navy, but they're two separate branches.
A truly iconic aircraft. Used to great effect in 1982 in Falklands war. I was involved with building the operating strips and fuel installations. Hard to belied over 40yrs ago!
@@mikefish8226 Different fuselage, different wings, different engine, different avionics everything is completely different. Only the name and VTOL capabilities are similar. It's not an upgrade its a completely different airframe.
@@PaxBritannica34563 Again, the idea that they are completely different "Areoplanes" (sic) is a stretch. There was lots of improvements but the fundamentals are the same.
This aircraft originated in Hawker aircraft, a company founded by Sir Tom Sopwith who lived until 1989, and whose 'zoo' of fighters were the mainstay of Britain's air forces in WW1. He lived to see his aircraft see of the Kaiser, the Austrian painter and the Argentine Junta in 1982.
We have now bridged that capability gap with a vastly superior aircraft but the Harrier surely was a truly great airplane. Another sad day when these AV8B'a go.
It’s the price you pay for progress. To be fair it’s had a very good run and done the UK proud. It’s no real shame to become obsolete in the shadow of a 5th gen aircraft.
@@ÆthelwulfOfNordHymbraLand2333 I'd take either with the massive technology advances in 40 years. But I think the Harrier was an amazing plane for the era.
Always loved the harrier. About 20 years ago we were somewhere in the south of England working on top of a water tower. We had a great view of 2 harriers practicing hovering and manoeuvres off in the distance
Still probably the best day, most memorable day of my life was when my dad and I went out on the wasp LHD-1 for a day cruise out of Norfolk back in I think it was 1990. My dad was on the wasp CV-7 during World War II when it was torpedoed and sank in 1943. They invited the old timers and their family back for the day cruise. I look at least one photo from that day every day.
I remember back in 1967 being at an airshow at RAF Coltishall in Norfolk watching in awe as the P1127 (Prototype) just sat there 100' off the ground. An amazing aircraft and still looks much better than the F-35 or any other V/STOL aircraft.
Amazing aircraft. I was lucky enough to get up close to a retired one in Krakow Aviation Museum in Poland which was given as a gift by the UK government.
They should never have retired these in the UK. The best ground support aircraft ever made, even better than the A10. It’s also more than capable of holding its own in any dog fight which has been proven. Upgrading should have given consideration to maintaining this in the British defence forces. Christ, if the can retain the Americas BUF which is now nearing a hundred years service then surely, Britain could have done the same with the Harrier.
Yeah, well it is a very practical thing that only a jet like the Harrier can do. Vertical take-off aircraft don't need airfields. And as we know, airfields are big easy targets and are generally target 1st. This you could hide in a large enough garage at someone's house. BFBS Creative made a great video on the harrier and explains why the jet doesn't even need to be supersonic for that very reason.
@@TheDrummingWarrior is it simply space? I thought the RAN didn't get the deck constructed with the necessary thermal coating to allow a VTOL landing without causing damage. This certainly applies to the F35. It would be much less of a problem for Harrier, where the difficulty is maintaining it, manufacturing spare parts, etc. The USMC bought all the left-over RAF Harriers and their remaining stock of parts in order to keep the AV8B running a few more years without having to spend stupid money on buying newly manufactured spares. The RAN would have the same problem.
@@davidhouseman4328 talking about both. The OP speculated about second hand AV8Bs for the RAN, and yes, the Canberra class as delivered to the RAN reportedly cannot operate F35B, but this has always raised questions about exactly why. They are most definitely big enough to operate a small number of the B, and you would trade that for fewer helicopters. But the RAN says they left out certain design features that would permit the use of F35B. Obviously this didn't include the ramp! So my guess is that they don't have things like the (quite expensive) thermal coating on the deck. Look at the QE class and you'll see different colour patches on the landing zone. This is the thermally treated area for VTOL. Canberra doesn't have that.
Oh I'd be all for a time-travelling Harrier jump jet! Have always loved its chunky shape which I find full of personality, plus of course it would be heading to all kinds of destinations with no runways.
It was actually due an upgrade to what you mentioned but as usual the Tories aren't very good at forward planning and culled the airframes instead of investing in them!
Just insanity that we'd throw such a elegant piece of engineering like this away for some stupid computers on wings. One of the most iconic aircraft of all time.
The second most amazing thing about this aircraft is how small it is in person. I thought it must have been a scale model at first! But it does make sense considering the first most amazing thing about it. 😉
You forgot that the Harrier is capable of changing the angle of its nozzles in flight, which the F-35 can’t accomplish. Plus the Harrier was designed for forward bases in unprepared field locations, which the F-35 is just a fancy bit of kit made for carrier operations.
Was "VIFFing" ever used by Sea Harriers in the Falklands? It's much less effective in real combat - almost like the West's version of the cobra maneuver. I think it was all-aspect heaters that won the air war.
@@effingsix3825 they'd never come into visual range. Even if they did, the F35 flies 1000mph faster and the harrier wouldn't even know where the f35 went.
It's astounding how many uniquely untalented and clueless people like Cameron and Sunak there are in charge of important and essential decision and policy making. Depressing. :0/
@@verynormalperson7003 we possess them, we don't own them. The software is proprietary, it's the iphone of jets, you can have it, but it's never yours.
@@epiphone5696 source code? Linux is the source code for iOS, but Apple still owns iOS. RTOS is owned by Greenhills Software and TR-3 is Lockheed Martin.
Well seeing that the UK does not appear to be able to afford to equip its two new aircraft carriers with a full complement of F35 Lightings, why didn't we keep some Harriers flying to make up the short-fall, instead of selling them all off cheap to the US Marines??
Our great friend the WONDERFUL USA🇱🇷✌️has said already that Britain isn't considered an elite fighting force anymore and would struggle to defend its Allie's and its self it would take quite a few years to get back on form as the military it once was RESPECTED AND FEARED THE WORLD OVER.respect to all those service men and women who've served and is still serving and sadly to all those who are no longer with us.THANK YOU ALL.🙂👍💂
I still cannot believe us British were dumb enough to can this awesome and versatile aircraft! What the heck were the MOD thinking?? I believe Hawker/BAE were actually working on a supersonic version of the Harrier GR9, with afterburning on the rear nozzles.
@@ÆthelwulfOfNordHymbraLand2333 no it's not🤦 the rear part of the fuselage is built at BAE systems in the UK. The lift fan assembly for the B variant is built by Rolls Royce in....the UK. The UK is a Tier 1 partner in the F35 project that means design, requirements and manufacture.
Britain shelved the Harriers 20 years ago. What a mistake. They role they play was clearly still useful (otherwise why would the US still be using it). Fastest helicopter in the world ;)
I know who could put all those going out of commission harriers to good use, as they could the Warthogs they were refused. America, happy to take our castoffs but reluctant to pass theirs on to a worthy cause!
i live near the old hawker factories in kingston... sad to see them slowly being knocked down and replaced. No one that lives there seems to know these machines and other hawker birds were built so close to us
As with Concord some critical parts are no longer available for various reasons, I know of metals, seals and various compounds and that are no longer produced including toxic elements plus the people with the knowledge to produce them with their original suppliers are no longer there . Despite all the tech in modern manufacturing the cost is also so high its lottery numbers to produce even what seem small simple parts.
The problem is that UK Ltd. no longer has the small companies that can manufacture bespoke short production run parts without CAD using skilled manual production. It's hard enough to find an engineering company to make a part for a post vintage car let alone a 40 + year old aircraft.
@@tonys1636 Exactly the type of firm I used to work for, plus some of the metal alloys were made as a batch specifically for the Pegasus project by foundries that no longer exist, 20 years ago there was only enough of that batch left for approx 30 spares including any scrap in process.
The US Marines still operate the AV-8B, though the last to Marines to be trained as Harrier pilots just completed training. The AV-8B is still fighting, having recently shot down about 6 Houthi drones. The last Marine squadron to fly them will operate them until mid 2026.
Good to see these are still in operation. In GTA online they have a equivalent aircraft based on the harrier called the hydra and its my fave to fly around the map with the ability to land and take off anywhere 🙂.
We should have kept Harriers, used them to complement the 30 odd F35s on our carriers in a High/low mix of planes. Some jobs need an F35, some need a less capable but still great plane. As always, the UK Government just think about money, (Not an issue when its Cameron hirign a luxury jet or Sunak using a helicopter)
It saddens me to say the UK made a tremendous mistake removing our Harriers from the RAF & RN, they would have complimented our F35 on our Carriers. It baffles me how stupid a government and the silly mistakes they make.
but why? They are slower, go less far, carry less and are a ground attack aircraft vs a proper swing role fighter like the F35. Add in much harder to fly, missing all the new sensors, cockpit, stealth etc and you've got a waste of money, if you have the newer aircraft. They are so different anyway🤷.
The US Navy doesn't operate the AV-8 Harrier, the US Marine Corps does. And the AN/APG-65 radar is used by the MD F-18 Hornets (Legacy Hornets) while the F-18 Super Hornets use the AN/APG-79 AESA radars.
I put this beautiful plane up there with the Spitfire as a truly iconic, legendary British icon❤
Agreed.
Concur 🇬🇧
Agreed. Love the Harrier!
Absolutely!
Don't forget the Mosquito and the English Electric Lighting.
25 years ago I was a 20yo Marine on the USS Wasp watching the Harriers come and go. Those jets were already as old as I was then. Amazing to see them still putting the work in. A classic airframe.
42 years ago I was a 19yo soldier watching Harriers during the Falklands war. Those jets had already been in service for 13 years.
Didn't you have to be at least 25 to be a marine? I thought the kid stuff was grunt work.
The f16 entered service in 1980, that's 44 years ago, the f15 entered service in 1976 that's 48 years ago, they are both still in service. The harrier entered service in 1971, 53 years ago.
@@SE-tc3cr The B-52 bomber entered service in 1959, and it's still flying to this day -- that's an incredible 65 years ago! Not only that, but with the Rolls Royce engine refit, the "BUFFS" will be flying well into the 2050s...!!!
@@Nevada_Dan Actually B-52s first entered service in 1955. So it's technically, 69 yo.
Love the Harriers ❤
To me this aircraft is as iconic as Concord. It was totally groundbreaking and so far ahead of its time. It proved itself in The Falklands war, neat trick if you can suddenly decelerate against much faster jets that can't. The thrust vectoring is genius.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought the harrier dominated so much because the Americans gave us the newly invented sidewinder missiles
All other missiles at the time needed to lock from behind the target
@@teddypicker8799 Sure those Sidewinder AIM-9L "Limas" were a technological leap but I see far too many Americans trying to say that means the Harrier was really nothing special which is patently untrue. Great planes, great pilots with top tactics and new weapons altogether did the trick.
@videowilliams yeah it was a beast jet wish we kept them to give to ukraine instead of flogging for cheap to the yanks
@@teddypicker8799 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
This aircraft is a unique icon, in its own league. Its also an example of what the British aircraft industry was capable of, which sadly is lost today.
Cameron our foreign secretary Schoolboy gave all our Harriers away after 30 years of invention and innovation the most unique war plane ever invented
He gave a lot more away defence wise...at the behest of some very rich folks from overseas.
Whatta Dickus
Dodgy Dave dirty deals done deviously
@@rachelar Definitely dodgy
He sold them to the yanks at a discount when agreeing to purchase the F35.
The Harrier was last truly iconic fighter. 🇬🇧 ever made.
The RAF and RN should never retired them before having a replacement in sufficient numbers.
this! the f35 is a remarkable piece of kit, and yet we dont have enough to complement an entire carrier, let alone 2.
Don't blame them blame the Tories and LibDems .
They were retired at least 10 years too early ,Britain has a habit of retiring kit before the replacement is ready . It's like cancelling your house insurance for a couple of years to save money, then keeping your fingers crossed and hoping for the best !
@@johngreen-sk4yk Nimrod was a good example when David Cameron smashed up brand new aircraft which left the UK without maritime air coverage.
@thegoat11111 Yep another good one. The sentry & wedgetail in and out of service gap being another 👍
And as a kid, one hovered in the dock in front of me at one of the Chatham Navy Days. Not entirely sure if (40 years later) my hearing is quite back yet.
We should never have scrapped our harriers. Thanks Cameron.
Yes we should, we don't have the budget of the US, the harrier was/is a great airplane but it did have its limitations, US now just use it for ground support, the F35 is an advancement of the harrier built for today and the future, with much better avionics speed and weapons not mention stealth capabilities.
And Cameron is still sticking his oar in from his unelected position. The sooner we have a (much smaller) elected second chamber the better.
@@markhammond9527 "we dont have the budget" you realise not only is the F35 more expensive than the Harrier, its also got a substantially higher operating cost from pilot training all the way to fuel/maintainence/ordanance costs.
Its been proven time and time again that having one system to rule all never ends well in the long run for multiple factors (like cost/deployement) imagine deploying an F35 for a given role which is substantially higher in costs/ordanance costs when you could simply deploy a cheaper Harrier to do a similar job.
Ill use the A10 during Afghanistan conflict, imagine if they replaced the A10 with something substantially more expensive but still does the "same role" financially thats stupid from a military perspective.
I dont disagree the F35 is better but better isnt always "better" not when you factor in costs. I still would keep Harriers in service for those cheaper "roles" assuming they ever happen this way it saves your more expensive Jets like the F35 and its pilots.
And it should also be noted, Harriers were designed to be taking off from virtually anywhere (forrests, FARPs etc.) I'de love to F35s take that role even with its VTOL capabilities, again when you factor in cost and deployement its just not going to happen.
If we hadn't retired them when we did, they'd still be in service today and the F35 would most probably have been delayed.
If we still had them, at least we'd have something of our own to put on our carriers. Them plus Gannets would ( sadly) be better than we could now field...
The British Harrier.. what an absolute icon. What this aircraft can do is phenomenal. I love that shape and seeing them take off and land. A design masterpiece.. easily my favourite fighter jet.
I grew up living between RAF Wittering and RAF Cottesmore. Tornados to my left, Harriers to my right. The Harriers had such a distinctive roar. Ahhh, the days when we had an airforce to be proud of .
Happy memories. We were proud of them.
To be clear at 1:27 the US Navy does not operate Harriers. It's the United States Marine Corps that operates the Harriers from US Navy amphibious assault ships. And yes, technically the USMC is part of the Department of the Navy, but they're two separate branches.
It made me sick in my stomach when we retired these wonderful planes
An honestly awesome machine ...
Well ahead of its time. We should never of retired them.
Never of? Those evening English classes were wasted...
@@markfox1545 clearly not your first language pal yes that’s the correct way of saying it 👍🏻💀😂
@@gregzy789_gaming4Seriously? You can't possibly believe that to be true. Your punctuation needs a little work too.
@@markfox1545 Just what I was about to point out.
Best Harrier movie was "True Lies" with Arnie and J L-K.
Don't forget the British were also part of the F35-B design and development team.
It’s in the bumblebee movie also
Yes, loved True Lies.
The Harrier is so loud you can't even hear yourself think, yet Arnie was able to shout instructions to Jamie Lee Curtis no problem.😂
@@DiceStrikeand in "The Living Daylights"
@@dataflowcTis a movie son, not a documentary
First designed and built at woodford aerodrome, near Stockport, Cheshire. The same place the avro Lancaster, Manchester and vulcan bombers were made
It took its first flight at Dunsfold and then the main manufacture and assembly took place at Hawker Sidley Kingston facility.
Harrier is reliable for what it is needed for
A truly iconic aircraft. Used to great effect in 1982 in Falklands war. I was involved with building the operating strips and fuel installations. Hard to belied over 40yrs ago!
Thank you for your service.
These are not Sea Harriers, they are AV-8B's/Harrier GR-9's. Completely different Areoplanes to what was used in the Falklands.
@@PaxBritannica34563 Completely different is a bit of a stretch.
@@mikefish8226 Different fuselage, different wings, different engine, different avionics everything is completely different. Only the name and VTOL capabilities are similar. It's not an upgrade its a completely different airframe.
@@PaxBritannica34563 Again, the idea that they are completely different "Areoplanes" (sic) is a stretch. There was lots of improvements but the fundamentals are the same.
This aircraft originated in Hawker aircraft, a company founded by Sir Tom Sopwith who lived until 1989, and whose 'zoo' of fighters were the mainstay of Britain's air forces in WW1. He lived to see his aircraft see of the Kaiser, the Austrian painter and the Argentine Junta in 1982.
We have now bridged that capability gap with a vastly superior aircraft but the Harrier surely was a truly great airplane. Another sad day when these AV8B'a go.
A superior aircraft which will be very difficult to replace and maintain under war time conditions.
It’s the price you pay for progress. To be fair it’s had a very good run and done the UK proud. It’s no real shame to become obsolete in the shadow of a 5th gen aircraft.
Laughable. Imagine the F-35 or Typhoon trying to fulfill the ground attack role that the Harrier II carried out.
@@ÆthelwulfOfNordHymbraLand2333 yep you are right....I suppose we should still be utilising Lancaster bombers as well.
@@ÆthelwulfOfNordHymbraLand2333 I'd take either with the massive technology advances in 40 years. But I think the Harrier was an amazing plane for the era.
Always loved the harrier. About 20 years ago we were somewhere in the south of England working on top of a water tower. We had a great view of 2 harriers practicing hovering and manoeuvres off in the distance
Still probably the best day, most memorable day of my life was when my dad and I went out on the wasp LHD-1 for a day cruise out of Norfolk back in I think it was 1990. My dad was on the wasp CV-7 during World War II when it was torpedoed and sank in 1943. They invited the old timers and their family back for the day cruise. I look at least one photo from that day every day.
Still a great bit of kit. Love the noise when the engine shuts down.
Like a giant Hoover😅
I remember back in 1967 being at an airshow at RAF Coltishall in Norfolk watching in awe as the P1127 (Prototype) just sat there 100' off the ground. An amazing aircraft and still looks much better than the F-35 or any other V/STOL aircraft.
Amazing aircraft. I was lucky enough to get up close to a retired one in Krakow Aviation Museum in Poland which was given as a gift by the UK government.
👌👏👏👍...fantastic to see the great old Harrier jump jet still in operation!!!...cracking aircraft!!!👍💯👌🇬🇧🇺🇸
are you British? Do you like the USA and Americans?
British Engineering at its Best.
Thats germany not brits
@@mz7460 What? You don't make sense.
This one remains as American
And it only took the world 40 years to match or overtake this glorious weapon.
One of my favorite aircraft. Uk should never have got rid of them until F35 in service
Loved these and called them in on targets during ops in afgan.... ALWAYS glad to see them.....
They should never have retired these in the UK. The best ground support aircraft ever made, even better than the A10. It’s also more than capable of holding its own in any dog fight which has been proven. Upgrading should have given consideration to maintaining this in the British defence forces. Christ, if the can retain the Americas BUF which is now nearing a hundred years service then surely, Britain could have done the same with the Harrier.
America is a superpower. With lots of money. Britain isn't.
Incredible piece of engineering
Loved that scene in True Lies , when Arnie jumps in that plane and has to relearn and the wheel rolls across the cop car .
What a shame Britain didn't capitalise on this wonderful invention.
We did, for decades.
Yeah, well it is a very practical thing that only a jet like the Harrier can do.
Vertical take-off aircraft don't need airfields. And as we know, airfields are big easy targets and are generally target 1st.
This you could hide in a large enough garage at someone's house.
BFBS Creative made a great video on the harrier and explains why the jet doesn't even need to be supersonic for that very reason.
I'm sure there'd still be a use for them in the RAN, I think they could fit in well with the strategies and needs
They'd need a ship to host them first, current helicopter carrier despite the ramp doesn't have the space to support fixed wing aviation.
@@TheDrummingWarrior is it simply space? I thought the RAN didn't get the deck constructed with the necessary thermal coating to allow a VTOL landing without causing damage. This certainly applies to the F35. It would be much less of a problem for Harrier, where the difficulty is maintaining it, manufacturing spare parts, etc. The USMC bought all the left-over RAF Harriers and their remaining stock of parts in order to keep the AV8B running a few more years without having to spend stupid money on buying newly manufactured spares. The RAN would have the same problem.
@TheDrummingWarrior are you sure your talking about harriers, its not spec'd for F35Bs but thats a much bigger aircraft.
@@davidhouseman4328 talking about both. The OP speculated about second hand AV8Bs for the RAN, and yes, the Canberra class as delivered to the RAN reportedly cannot operate F35B, but this has always raised questions about exactly why. They are most definitely big enough to operate a small number of the B, and you would trade that for fewer helicopters. But the RAN says they left out certain design features that would permit the use of F35B. Obviously this didn't include the ramp! So my guess is that they don't have things like the (quite expensive) thermal coating on the deck. Look at the QE class and you'll see different colour patches on the landing zone. This is the thermally treated area for VTOL. Canberra doesn't have that.
Oh I'd be all for a time-travelling Harrier jump jet! Have always loved its chunky shape which I find full of personality, plus of course it would be heading to all kinds of destinations with no runways.
The harrier was a beast to control, constantly having to adjust control wheels. THAT could have been upgraded to joystick control.
@@paulhiggins6024 It was a plane that had a lot of opportunity for upgrade and changes. It was a crying shame they abandoned it.
It was actually due an upgrade to what you mentioned but as usual the Tories aren't very good at forward planning and culled the airframes instead of investing in them!
Just insanity that we'd throw such a elegant piece of engineering like this away for some stupid computers on wings. One of the most iconic aircraft of all time.
Are you British? Do you like the USA and Americans?
Still a viable option for so many rolls today. Be a good idea to keep some of these aircraft, still useful.
Flying this in DCS as my first aircraft, I love it!
Keep it flying!!!!
Happiness is vectored thrust.
Timeless, poetry in motion 👌
One of the greats…..
The second most amazing thing about this aircraft is how small it is in person. I thought it must have been a scale model at first! But it does make sense considering the first most amazing thing about it. 😉
Still viable in my opinion.
Very much a potent option!
You forgot that the Harrier is capable of changing the angle of its nozzles in flight, which the F-35 can’t accomplish. Plus the Harrier was designed for forward bases in unprepared field locations, which the F-35 is just a fancy bit of kit made for carrier operations.
Came in pretty handy in dogfights over the Falklands, or so I've read.
Was "VIFFing" ever used by Sea Harriers in the Falklands? It's much less effective in real combat - almost like the West's version of the cobra maneuver. I think it was all-aspect heaters that won the air war.
As if the f35 would need to do that lmao dogfights don't exist anymore
@@performance618 I contend that once you happen to come into visual range, you’re in a dogfight, meaning a turning battle. Harrier wins, hands down.
@@effingsix3825 they'd never come into visual range. Even if they did, the F35 flies 1000mph faster and the harrier wouldn't even know where the f35 went.
Best to keep them in reserve for as long as possible, thanks cheers 😊
I was on both the Wasp and the Hornet in Quonsett Point, RI back in the late 60's with the Boy Scouts
They made their debut in Command and Conquer Red Alert 2
Very short sighted to sell of Harrier from the Royal Navy
Thanks Cameron for that stupid short sighted decision. And now he’s a Lord, God help us!
Absolutely shameful that these were retired so early, especially when it left a capability gap for years.
The world only needs one big boss.
Awesome, miss them in the UK.
Still better than the F35 and always will be!
Maybe they need them on the UK carrier too
We got F-35. Like we'd go backwards and use them on our carriers. How clueless you are.
@@luciussander8217 I'm a convicted criminal
The UK gov are idiots for retiring these.
Scrapped by our erstwhile, now foreign secretary. Even today he continues with his appalling judgments.
It's astounding how many uniquely untalented and clueless people like Cameron and Sunak there are in charge of important and essential decision and policy making. Depressing. :0/
why did we get rid off this great plane
AN/APG 65 was used in the legacy hornet, the super hornet uses the AN/APG 79
So silly to have given ours away.
So true!🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
well, we have f35bs now
@@verynormalperson7003 we possess them, we don't own them. The software is proprietary, it's the iphone of jets, you can have it, but it's never yours.
UK is the only nation who has the source code of the f35 as we was the only tier 1 partner in the programme
@@epiphone5696 source code? Linux is the source code for iOS, but Apple still owns iOS. RTOS is owned by Greenhills Software and TR-3 is Lockheed Martin.
Still remember when they would fly super low over our primary school every now and again
Well seeing that the UK does not appear to be able to afford to equip its two new aircraft carriers with a full complement of F35 Lightings, why didn't we keep some Harriers flying to make up the short-fall, instead of selling them all off cheap to the US Marines??
because people who understand military acquisition are not in the positions they should be, its all politics these days.
@cjjk9142 I hope we can afford it. Are 48 aircraft enough for 2 carriers?
Best ever VTOL
Our great friend the WONDERFUL USA🇱🇷✌️has said already that Britain isn't considered an elite fighting force anymore and would struggle to defend its Allie's and its self it would take quite a few years to get back on form as the military it once was RESPECTED AND FEARED THE WORLD OVER.respect to all those service men and women who've served and is still serving and sadly to all those who are no longer with us.THANK YOU ALL.🙂👍💂
Thank you
The Bona Jet (viffing into combat, ain't been shot down yet) 🎵🎶
The Navy should be still operating them they get carried away with fancy technology
Great plane! Always loved it.
Greetings from Buenos Aires.
The USMC just graduated its last Harrier pilots
Nobody cares. They'll be out of a job next year.
And we sold them.
Thanks Cameron !!!!!
I still cannot believe us British were dumb enough to can this awesome and versatile aircraft! What the heck were the MOD thinking?? I believe Hawker/BAE were actually working on a supersonic version of the Harrier GR9, with afterburning on the rear nozzles.
but we replaced it with a supersonic stealth aircraft that is also VSTOL🤷 About 30% of each F35 is built in the UK if I remember correctly.
are you British? Do you like the USA and Americans?
@@eagle_rb_mmoomin_418 are you British? Do you like the USA and Americans?
@@eagle_rb_mmoomin_418No. The F-35 is built entirely in the United States of America by Lockheed Martin.
@@ÆthelwulfOfNordHymbraLand2333
no it's not🤦 the rear part of the fuselage is built at BAE systems in the UK. The lift fan assembly for the B variant is built by Rolls Royce in....the UK. The UK is a Tier 1 partner in the F35 project that means design, requirements and manufacture.
Falklands : I counted them all out and I counted them all back.
Britain shelved the Harriers 20 years ago. What a mistake.
They role they play was clearly still useful (otherwise why would the US still be using it).
Fastest helicopter in the world ;)
Shouldve kept the GR9 until the late 2010s
1950s tech stoll rolling
I know who could put all those going out of commission harriers to good use, as they could the Warthogs they were refused. America, happy to take our castoffs but reluctant to pass theirs on to a worthy cause!
i live near the old hawker factories in kingston... sad to see them slowly being knocked down and replaced. No one that lives there seems to know these machines and other hawker birds were built so close to us
:26 You forgot to mention the that the Royal Navy ALSO flys the F-35B.
As with Concord some critical parts are no longer available for various reasons, I know of metals, seals and various compounds and that are no longer produced including toxic elements plus the people with the knowledge to produce them with their original suppliers are no longer there . Despite all the tech in modern manufacturing the cost is also so high its lottery numbers to produce even what seem small simple parts.
The problem is that UK Ltd. no longer has the small companies that can manufacture bespoke short production run parts without CAD using skilled manual production. It's hard enough to find an engineering company to make a part for a post vintage car let alone a 40 + year old aircraft.
@@tonys1636 Exactly the type of firm I used to work for, plus some of the metal alloys were made as a batch specifically for the Pegasus project by foundries that no longer exist, 20 years ago there was only enough of that batch left for approx 30 spares including any scrap in process.
The US Marines still operate the AV-8B, though the last to Marines to be trained as Harrier pilots just completed training. The AV-8B is still fighting, having recently shot down about 6 Houthi drones. The last Marine squadron to fly them will operate them until mid 2026.
Good to see these are still in operation. In GTA online they have a equivalent aircraft based on the harrier called the hydra and its my fave to fly around the map with the ability to land and take off anywhere 🙂.
@1:28 did you mean "US Marine Corps" ?
The US navy does not fly harriers only the US marines and not to many at that !!!
It was the tip of the spear in the Falklands
We should have kept Harriers, used them to complement the 30 odd F35s on our carriers in a High/low mix of planes. Some jobs need an F35, some need a less capable but still great plane. As always, the UK Government just think about money, (Not an issue when its Cameron hirign a luxury jet or Sunak using a helicopter)
The government thinks about money because bankrupting a nation is an awful way of running an economy. Liz Truss was a good reminder of that.
Gad we love that plane
The Hughes APG-65 was used in the F/A-18A/C Hornets, not the Super Hornets.
Cool!
Do you remember when one landed on a container ship during the Falklands war?
“Then get ready for the pride of the United States Air Force, the British made Harrier jump jet!”
These are AV-8Bs, made by the US
@@Orbital_Inclinationav8bs are just British GR9s but us produced
It saddens me to say the UK made a tremendous mistake removing our Harriers from the RAF & RN, they would have complimented our F35 on our Carriers. It baffles me how stupid a government and the silly mistakes they make.
but why? They are slower, go less far, carry less and are a ground attack aircraft vs a proper swing role fighter like the F35. Add in much harder to fly, missing all the new sensors, cockpit, stealth etc and you've got a waste of money, if you have the newer aircraft. They are so different anyway🤷.
are you British? Do you like the USA and Americans?
@@eagle_rb_mmoomin_418
It's to have the numbers to fit out the carrier airwings until the glacial delivery schedule for the F35's catches up.
The US Navy doesn't operate the AV-8 Harrier, the US Marine Corps does. And the AN/APG-65 radar is used by the MD F-18 Hornets (Legacy Hornets) while the F-18 Super Hornets use the AN/APG-79 AESA radars.
It's nice our Yank coz's are still using the Harrier long after we've retired them.
A proven design that should be continually modernized
APG-65 radar came from legacy Hornet, not Super Hornet (APG-79).
Correction: apg65 is not found on a super hornet. Super hornet uses the AESA apg79. It’s decades ahead
Americans should have adopted the ski jumped for their amphibious assault carriers. Offers many advantages that the f35 could have also used