Fly the Harrier AV-8 by X-Trident in VR

Fly the Harrier AV-8 by X-Trident in VR

Fly the Harrier AV-8B by X-Trident in VR

The best aircraft I have flown in a long time.

The AV-8B is an “all weather”, night and day single seat light fighter with the capability to perform STOVL (short take-off / vertical landing) operations, either on the ground or onboard ships.
The aircraft is powered by a Rolls-Royce jet engine, whose thrust can be vectored downward to provide lift at any speed. An internal APU (Auxiliary Power Unit) can provide electrical power, both on ground and during flight.

Fuel tanks are installed inside the fuselage and wings; up to four auxiliary tanks can be installed on underwing pylons in order to extend the range.
Flight controls are normally hydraulically powered and automatically switch to manual in case of failure; small nozzles (RCS) linked to flight controls are mounted on wing tips, nose and tail, they allow to keep the attitude under control when the speed is too low for aerodynamic surfaces to work. Flaps on wings are automatically operated, depending on actual selected mode, speed and AOA; an airbrake is mounted under the rear fuselage section and is used to increase drag, thus reducing the speed.

Retractable Landing Gear is hydraulically operated, two legs are located under the fuselage in centered position and two legs are located under the wings. The nose wheel can steer to control yaw on ground, the main center gear has two side-by-side wheels and is provided with brakes. The cockpit is in the forward part of the fuselage and has a single ejectable seat; the windshield provides protection from atmospheric phenomena and bird strikes; the canopy can slide back when on the ground to give access; the cockpit is air-conditioned and pressurized up to 50.000 ft. Up to 15 stores can be installed on underwing and under fuselage pylons. Air to ground, air to air weapons can be independently operated through a control panel. Also, a gun pod can be installed under the fuselage.

Two Hydraulic Systems provide power to operate flight controls, landing gear and brakes. Electrical power is supplied by an engine driven generator, a battery and an APU and is composed of various busses which distribute power under normal and emergency conditions.
External lights can be set to various configurations, including NVG (night vision goggles) mode, which allows the lights to be visible only when wearing NVGs. Landing gear lights illuminate the frontal area during take-off, approach or taxi.

The Harrier, informally referred to as the Harrier Jump Jet, is a family of jet-powered attack aircraft capable of vertical/short takeoff and landing operations (V/STOL). Named after a bird of prey, it was originally developed by British manufacturer Hawker Siddeley in the 1960s. The Harrier emerged as the only truly successful V/STOL design of the many attempted during that era. It was conceived to operate from improvised bases, such as car parks or forest clearings, without requiring large and vulnerable air bases. Later, the design was adapted for use from aircraft carriers.

There are two generations and four main variants of the Harrier family, developed by both UK and US manufacturers:

• Hawker Siddeley Harrier

  • British Aerospace Sea Harrier

• McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II

  • British Aerospace Harrier II

The Hawker Siddeley Harrier is the first generation-version and is also known as the AV-8A Harrier; it was used by multiple air forces, including the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the United States Marine Corps (USMC). The Sea Harrier is a naval strike/air defence fighter derived from the Hawker Siddeley Harrier; it was operated by both the Royal Navy and the Indian Navy. During the 1980s, a second generation Harrier emerged; manufactured in the United States as the AV-8B and in Britain as the British Aerospace Harrier II respectively. By the start of the 21st century, the majority of the first generation Harriers had been withdrawn, many operators having chosen to procure the second generation as a replacement. In the long term, several operators have announced their intention to supplement or replace their Harrier fleets with the STOVL variant of the F-35 Lightning II, designated as the F-35B.

Throughout the 1950s, particularly in the years following the Korean War, a number of aircraft companies in both Europe and America separately decided to investigate the prospective capabilities and viability of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft, which would eliminate the requirement for vulnerable runways by taking off and landing vertically as opposed to the conventional horizontal approach. In addition to military applications, the prospect of applying such technology to commercial airliners was also viewed with considerable interest by the mid 1950s, thus the value of developing viable vertical take-off systems was judged to be substantial. However, during this era, few companies envisioned that a VTOL aircraft could also be compatible with the characteristics of high performance military aircraft.

Underside view of the first prototype P.1127. The rotating jet nozzles were a key design element of its VTOL capability

During 1957, following an approach by the British aero engine manufacturer Bristol Engine Company, who were designing an innovative vectored thrust engine, British aviation conglomerate Hawker Aircraft developed their design for an aeroplane that could meet an existing NATO specification calling for a "Light Tactical Support Fighter". Bristol's projected vectored thrust engine, which received the name Pegasus, harnessed rotatable cold jets which were positioned on either side of the compressor along with a 'hot' jet which was directed via a conventional central tailpipe; this concept had originated from Michel Wibault, a French aviation consultant. Throughout much of the early development work, there was no financial support for the project from HM Treasury; however, support for the engine development portion of the effort was sourced via NATO's Mutual Weapon Development Program (MWDP).

Senior project engineer Ralph Hooper at Hawker promptly set about establishing an initial layout for a theoretical aircraft to take advantage of the Pegasus engine, using data provided by Bristol. During March 1959, the newly merged Hawker Siddeley decided to privately fund a pair of prototypes of the design, which had received the internal company designation of P.1127, to demonstrate the design's capabilities. During the 1960s, the P.1127 attracted the attention of the RAF; this would eventually result in the development and issuing of Requirement ASR 384, which sought a V/STOL aircraft for ground attack operations. During late 1965, the RAF placed an order for six pre-production P.1127 (RAF) aircraft.

As early as 1973, Hawker Siddeley and American aviation manufacturer McDonnell Douglas were jointly working on development of a more capable version of the Harrier. Early efforts concentrated on the development of an improved Pegasus engine, designated the Pegasus 15, which was being tested by Bristol Siddeley. During August 1981, the program received a boost when British Aerospace (BAe) and McDonnell Douglas signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), marking the UK's re-entry into the program. The Harrier was extensively redeveloped by McDonnell Douglas, and later joined by BAe (now parts of Boeing and BAE Systems, respectively), leading to the family of second-generation V/STOL jet multi-role aircraft. The American designation for this was the AV-8B Harrier II.

On 12 December 1983, the first production AV-8B was delivered to the USMC. The AV-8B is primarily used for attack or multi-role tasks, typically operated from small aircraft carriers.[26][27] The RAF also chose to procure the second generation of the British Aerospace-built (with McDonnell Douglas as subcontractor) Harrier II GR5/GR7/GR9, which entered service in the mid-1980s.[28] This model was also operated by several other NATO countries, including Spain and Italy. In December 1989, the first RAF squadron to be equipped with the Harrier II was declared operational.[29] The British Harrier II was used by the RAF and later by the Royal Navy up to 2010, at which point the Harrier II and the Joint Force Harrier operational unit was disbanded as a cost-saving measure.

Between 1969 and 2003, 824 Harrier variants were delivered. While the manufacture of new Harriers concluded in 1997, the last remanufactured aircraft (Harrier II Plus configuration) was delivered in December 2003, ending the Harrier production line.

Do not let anything hold you back.

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What you will learn

• Introduction to flying the AV8 Harrier Jump Jet

Rating: 5

Level: All Levels

Duration: 7.5 hours

Instructor: Graham "The Baron" Hesketh