AV-8 Harrier Fact File

[Matt Wiser]

Here's the Harrier fact file, with past discussion taken into consideration.


The AV-8 Harrier In World War III



The AV-8 Harrier had a complicated war history in the Third World War, with prewar plans for the aircraft being thrown out the window, and being adopted by the U.S. Navy for service aboard amphibious assault carriers being used in the Sea Control mission. However, those aircraft that did see USMC and USN service during the war and after acquitted themselves well, This work will examine the USMC and USN use of the Harrier, during the war and after. RAF and Royal Navy use will be covered in a separate work.

Variants:


AV-8A: The original version procured by the U.S. Marine Corps, direct from British Aerospace (then Hawker Siddley) beginning in 1971. 102 AV-8A attack and TAV-8A trainer aircraft delivered. Primary differences from RAF version were the Rolls-Royce Pegasus 11 engine as used in the GR.3, magnesium components removed and replaced due to sea corrosion issues, American radios and IFF gear installed, and AIM-9 capability installed from the outset. Twin 30-mm Aden cannon pods standard.

AV-8C: Upgrade of AV-8As to C standard with new airframe components to extend service life, new INS and ECM installed.

TAV-8A: Trainer version with seats for student and instructor, two weapons pylons for weapons training.


AV-8B: All new version developed by both McDonnell Douglas (which had planned to produce the AV-8A under license) and British Aerospace. New wing with six pylons, centerline pylon between GAU-12 25-mm gun and ammo pods extensive use of composite materials, Rolls-Royce Pegasus 11 engine with 21,450 lbs of thrust. Increased stores capability for 13,000 lbs of ordnance, including AIM-9, AGM-65, plus dumb bombs, rocket pods, and CBUs. Hughes ARBS fitted as standard.

TAV-8B: Trainer version with two pylons for weapons training.

AV-8B (Night Attack): Postwar version with FLIR, wide-angle HUD, NVG-compatible cockpit for night missions.

AV-8B+ (Redesignated AV-8E) Upgraded versions both new-build and CILOP (Conversion In Lieu of Production), with APG-65 multimode radar as used in the F/A-18, AIM-120, Harpoon, and HARM capability added. Originally a private venture by both McAir and British Aerospace, it was adopted by the USN for the Sea Control mission, as well as several postwar FMS operators.


Service:

Marine AV-8Cs saw combat from the first day, with VMA-513 at MCAS Yuma using their Harriers alongside A-4 Skyhawk squadrons based there to successfully defend the Yuma area against Cuban and Mexican forces. However, losses due to MANPADS and AAA meant the squadron had to do a quick transition to the A-4, using examples brought out of AMARC storage. The squadron would reform on the AV-8B postwar for the Amphibious Support mission, transitioning postwar to the Night Attack variant.

On the East Coast, VMA-542 had been anticipating a stand-down to transition to the AV-8B, only to have the outbreak of war change those plans. The squadron flew CAS missions in Louisiana in support of the Brown Water War, until losses required a stand-down to transition to the A-7E using aircraft from the reopened LTV line at Willow Run, MI. The first squadron to have the B operationally, VMA-231, also flew CAS, but went to sea to fill the Sea Control mission until the Navy's squadrons could stand up. The squadron remained operational on the AV-8B for support of amphibious operations, serving at both Iceland and Kola, later transitioning to the Night Attack version.

The Navy, needing additional fighters to handle the Sea Control misison, decided to adopt the AV-8B, with two former VSF Squadrons, VSF-1 and -3, standing up in 1986. VSF-1 took over the Pacific Fleet mission, while VSF-3 did the same for the Atlantic Fleet, with each squadron sending four-ship detachments to Iwo Jima and Tarawa-class ships operating in what World War II veterans of the Battle of the Atlantic recognized as the CVE mission. Both squadrons acquitted themselves well in the mission, killing a number of Soviet Bear and Badger recon aircraft, while VSF-3 saw heavy combat at Kola, performing the CAS mission in support of the Marine raid there. Both squadrons remained active postwar, seeing duty in the Indian Ocean and Western Pacific in the anti-piracy mission in Somali, Indonesian, and Chinese waters. VSF-3 was the first to transition to the B+ (later E) in 2002,with VSF-1 following a year later. While Marine squadrons have been receiving the F-24B in recent years for the CAS and Amphibious mission, being V/STOL capable, the Navy has yet to make a decision on whether or not to adopt the F-24B, or disestablish the VSF squadrons to allow Marine squadrons to take over their mission.

Current Operators:

USN:

VSF-1 (NAS North Island, CA): AV-8E

VSF-3 (NAS Cecil Field, FL): AV-8E

USMC:

VMAT-203 (MCAS Cherry Point, NC): TAV-8B, AV-8B, AV-8B (NA), AV-8E.

VMA-231 (MCAS Cherry Point, NC): AV-8B (NA)

VMA-513:(MCAS Yuma, AZ): AV-8B (NA)


Foreign users:

The AV-8E is in service with Brazil (Navy), Republic of Korea (Navy), Italy (Navy),and Spain (Navy).

[Poohbah]

The Harrier was the wrong plane for the war we got, and it showed. It ended up becoming a niche player on a par with the RB-69B Artemis counter-SOF bird--it had a very few specialized roles, and when it was operated within the parameters of those missions, all was well.

When LockMart got the F-24B fully developed, that more or less redefined the entire V/STOL & STOVL mission spaces to make them much more competitive with CTOL/CATOBAR airframes.

[Wolfman]

It’s proven itself in the years since the War, though.

More to the point, wouldn’t the AV-8B+ be redesignated as the AV-8D?