Harrier Jump Jet
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- This article is about the Harrier family of V/STOL aircraft. For other uses of "Harrier", see Harrier.
| Harrier Jump Jet | |
|---|---|
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| A Harrier GR7A of the Royal Air Force | |
| Type | STOVL strike/fighter aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Hawker-Siddeley McDonnell Douglas/British Aerospace Boeing/BAE Systems |
| Introduced | 1969 |
| Primary users | U.S. Marine Corps Royal Air Force Royal Navy Spanish Navy Italian Navy Royal Thai Navy |
| Developed from | Hawker P.1127/Kestrel FGA.1 |
| Variants | Harrier Sea Harrier AV-8 Harrier II BAE Harrier II |
Harrier Jump Jet, often refered to as just "the Jump Jet", is a military jet aircraft. It is capable of vertical/short takeoff and landing or V/STOL and is the only truly successful design of this type from the many that arose in the 1960s.
There are four main versions of the Harrier Jump Jet.
- Hawker-Siddeley Harrier - 1st generation Harrier, also known as the AV-8A Harrier.
- British Aerospace Sea Harrier - Maritime strike/air defence fighter aircraft.
- Boeing/BAE Systems AV-8B Harrier II - 2nd generation Harrier.
- BAE Systems/Boeing Harrier II - British variant of the 2nd generation Harrier.
Contents |
[edit] Introduction to the Harrier Family
The Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR.1/GR.3 and the AV-8A Harrier are the first generation of the Harrier series, the first operational close-support and reconnaissance attack aircraft with V/STOL capabilities.
The Harrier was extensively redeveloped, leading to the Harrier GR7/GR9 and AV-8B Harrier II, that were built by BAE Systems and Boeing.
The BAE Systems Sea Harrier is a naval VTOL/STOVL jet fighter, reconnaissance and attack aircraft, a development of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier. It first entered service with the Royal Navy in April 1980 as the Sea Harrier FSR.1, and was informally known as the "Shar". The latest version is the Sea Harrier FA2. It was withdrawn from Royal Navy service in March 2006.
The Boeing/BAE Systems AV-8B Harrier II is a family of second-generation vertical/short takeoff and landing or V/STOL jet mullti-role aircraft of the late 20th century. Developed from the earlier Hawker-Siddeley Harriers, it is primarily used for light attack or multi-role tasks, typically operated from small aircraft carriers. Versions are used by several NATO countries, including the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, and the United States.
The BAE Systems/Boeing Harrier II (GR5, GR7, and GR9 series) is a second generation vertical/short takeoff and landing (V/STOL) jet aircraft used by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and, since 2006, the Royal Navy. It was developed from the earlier Hawker-Siddeley Harrier and is very closely related to the US built AV-8B Harrier II. Both are primarily used for light attack or multi-role tasks, and are often operated from small aircraft carriers.
[edit] Development
[edit] Variants
[edit] Pre-Harrier technology demonstrators
- Hawker P.1127 (1960)
- Hawker Siddeley Kestrel FGA.1 (1964)
[edit] RAF Harriers
- Single-seaters
- Harrier GR.1 (1966)
- Harrier GR.1/1A (1969)
- Harrier GR.3/3A
- Two-seaters
- Harrier T.2/2A (1970)
- Harrier T.4/4A
- Harrier T.4N
- Harrier T.8 (1994)
- Harrier Mk.52 (two-seat company demonstrator)
- Harrier T.Mk 60
[edit] AV-8 Harrier (US, Spain, Thailand)
- AV-8A Harrier/Harrier Mk.50 (USMC version, 1970)
- TAV-8A Harrier/Harrier Mk.54
- AV-8C Harrier
- AV-8S Matador/Harrier Mk.53 (for Spain, later Thailand)
- AV-8S Matador/Harrier Mk.55 (second batch of AV-8S for Spain, later Thailand)
- TAV-8S Matador/Harrier T.54 (for Spain, later Thailand)
[edit] British Aerospace Sea Harrier
- Sea Harrier FRS.1 (1979)
- Sea Harrier FA2 (1988)
- Sea Harrier FRS.51 (1983)
[edit] McDonnell Douglas-BAe/Boeing AV-8B Harrier II
- AV-8B Harrier II (1983)
- EAV-8B Matador II (for Spain)
- AV-8B Harrier II Night Attack (1987)
- AV-8B Harrier II Plus (1992) (USMC, Spain, Italy)
[edit] BAe-McDonnell Douglas/BAE Systems Harrier II
- Harrier GR5/5A (1985)
- Harrier GR7/7A (1992)
- Harrier GR9/9A (2002)
- Harrier T10
- Harrier T12
[edit] Controls and handling
While the Harrier is one of the most flexible aircraft ever made, the level of understanding and skill needed to pilot it is considerable. The Harrier is capable of both forward flight (where it behaves in the manner of a typical fixed-wing aircraft above its stall speed), and VTOL and STOL manoeuvres (where the traditional lift and control surfaces are useless). This requires skills and understanding more usually associated with helicopters. Most services demand great aptitude and extensive training for Harrier pilots, as well as experience of piloting both types of aircraft. Many recruit trainee pilots from the most experienced and skilled helicopter pilots in their organisations.
The Harrier has two control elements that a fixed-wing aircraft does not usually have. These are the thrust vector and reaction control system. The thrust vector refers to the slant of the four engine nozzles and can be set between zero degrees (horizontal, pointing directly back) and 98 degrees (pointing down and slightly forwards). The 90 degree place is generally used for VTOL maneuvering. Thrust vector is adjusted by a control next to the thrust lever. The reaction control is achieved by manipulating the control stick and is similar in action to the cyclic control of a helicopter. While irrelevant during forward flight mode, these controls are essential during VTOL and STOL, and are used together during these manoeuvres. Wind direction and the point of reference of the aircraft to this is also crucial during VTOL manoeuvres (in this sense operation is limited compared with a helicopter, which can take off and land in side winds). The Harrier's landing gear configuration also complicates normal landing; it is necessary to ensure that the wing-mounted stabiliser struts contact the runway simultaneously; bounce or tilt to one side can result if this is not achieved.
The procedure for VTO involves parking the aircraft facing into the wind. The aircraft is brought to a halt, throttle to idle, wheels locked. The thrust vector is set to 90 degrees and the throttle brought up to maximum. The aircraft leaves the ground rapidly. The throttle is trimmed until a hover state is achieved at the desired altitude. During the ascent and hover, the reaction control system is continuously adjusted to maintain position over the patch of ground, much as it is with a helicopter. The aircraft has to face into the wind when taking off in this way. A side wind causes the aircraft to pitch away from the lee side. This would alter the thrust vector away from vertical and cause the aircraft to slew sideways. This is hard to control and dangerous. In severe cases the aircraft can settle with power while moving to the side. While taking off in windy conditions is always more difficult when within ground effect, it is easier to maintain heading away from the ground effect as the tailplane tends to stabilise the heading into the wind. At hover, the thrust vector is slowly returned to horizontal while the altitude and angle of attack is maintained in a specified range. At or shortly after normal take off speed, the thrust vector is set to horizontal and thrust is usually trimmed back to control acceleration.
The STO procedure involves proceeding with normal take off and then applying a thrust vector (less than 90 degrees) at a runway speed below normal take off speed. For lower take off speeds, the thrust vector applied is greater. The vector and thrust is then trimmed until take off speed. Several procedures have been described for different runway lengths.
In forward flight, the Harrier is at an advantage compared with fixed wing aircraft in that in the event of stalling, recovery is possible by quickly adjusting the thrust vector and throttle. For STOL and VTOL landing, it is necessary to drop below the normal stall speed and apply this method (against all the instincts of the trained fixed wing pilot). The thrust vector control allows for the engine nozzles to be adjusted to a maximum stop of 98 degrees. This facilitates backward motion as needed but is not normally applied during VTOL as the heading into the wind tends to require some forward thrust via attitude control to maintain a fixed hovering position.
The Harrier is capable of vectored-thrust maneuvers, in which the thrust nozzles are rotated beyond 0 degrees in forward flight for the purpose of decreasing the loading of the wing, and thusly, increasing instantaneous and sustained turn performance in the horizontal plane. Because this reduces thrust to the aft of the aircraft, acceleration and maneuvers in the vertical plane are hampered by thrust vectoring, where thrust-to-weight is more necessary than low wing loading.
[edit] Popular culture
The Harrier's unique characteristics have led to it being featured a number of films and video games, most notably the James Bond movie The Living Daylights.
[edit] References
- ↑ House of Commons Hansard, Written Answers, January 5 2004 [1]
- ↑ RAF Cottesmore Station Harrier Specifications [2]
Cowan, Ed Charles W. (1972). Flypast 2. Profile Publications Ltd, Berkshire, Windsor, England. ISBN 0-85383-191-2.
[edit] External links
Photographs of Harrier G R Mk 7 deployed aboard HMS Illustrious
- A picture of the Hawker Kestrel XS688 at the 1964 Farnborough Air Show
- Website with Sea Harrier Pictures
- RTP-TV AeroSpace Show: Video of Harrier Hovering
- Navy.mil - Standard Aircraft Characteristics: AV-8B Harrier II
- UK MoD Release lauds No. 1 Squadron & No. 3 Squadron's role in Afghanistan with GR7As (August 10, 2005)
- Defense Industry Daily: AV-8B Harrier finding Success in Iraq (March 30, 2005)
- The Vertical Vision - a Pulitzer Prize winnning article in three parts on the accident prone Harrier published in 2002
[edit] Related content
Related development
- Hawker P.1127/Hawker Kestrel
- Hawker Siddeley P.1154
- Hawker-Siddeley Harrier
- BAE Sea Harrier
- AV-8 Harrier II
- BAE Harrier II
Comparable aircraft
Designation sequence
- Hawker-Siddeley/BAE:
- P.1052 - P.1072 - P.1081 - P.1127/Kestrel - Harrier - P.1154 - BAE Sea Harrier - BAE Harrier II
- US Military:
Related lists
- List of aircraft of the RAF
- List of attack aircraft
- List of fighter aircraft
- List of VTOL aircraft
- List of active United Kingdom military aircraft
- List of military aircraft of the United States
- List of active United States military aircraft
See also
Categories: Active United States military aircraft | Active United Kingdom military aircraft | British experimental aircraft 1960-1969 | British fighter aircraft 1960-1969 | British attack aircraft 1970-1979 | British fighter aircraft 1970-1979 | British attack aircraft 1980-1989 | British fighter aircraft 1980-1989 | Carrier-based aircraft | Fleet Air Arm | U.S. attack aircraft 1970-1979 | United States Marine Corps equipment | VTOL aircraft
