OVERSEAS BUYERS

The US Army had shown an early interest in the P.1127, and Northrop had accordingly purchased a licence, but this particular dream was ended by a new ‘roles-and-missions’ agreement between the Army and the USAF, allocating fixedwing close support exclusively to the latter. The USAF had made it clear that they had no demand for an aircraft that could not reach Mach 2 (twice the speed of sound).

In 1970 the US Marine Corps (USMC) ordered twelve Harriers. The first AV-8A, as it was designated, was flown on 20 November 1970. By December 1976, when the last aircraft was delivered, the total had risen to 110. All were completed at Dunsfold, where they were test-flown before being dismantled and transported to America in USAF transport aircraft. When it entered service in 1971, the AV-8A was powered by a Pegasus 10 Mk 802, but this was soon superseded by the Pegasus 11 Mk 803. The AV-8A somewhat surprisingly retained the 30mm Aden guns, but introduced Sidewinder wiring provision on the outer pylons, making them a permanent fit. The British radios were replaced and on delivery to the US the Martin-Baker Mk 9A ejector seat was swapped for the somewhat inferior Stencel SIIIS-3 seat.

Did you know?

The USMC’s provision for Sidewinder missiles on the AV-8A led to a new dogfighting tactic. This was ‘Vectoring in Forward Flight’ (VIFF). The Marine pilot who performed the first evaluations on VIFF in 1970, Capt Harry Blot, fully reversed the nozzles while flying at high speed on his first test flight. He reported that he ‘decelerated rapidly’. However, he could not determine just how rapidly, since he was ‘curled around the stick with his nose stuck on the gunsight’.

‘The vision was also excellent to the front but poor to the rear; good if you are winning, bad if you are losing. The handling was superb, both for the airframe and the engine. By this I mean the stall characteristics were such that pilots would not be afraid to fly the airplane to the edge of the published envelope. The airframe went where it was pointed and the engine kept running. Who could ask for more?’

Lt Col Harry W. Blot, US Marine Corps on exploring the benefits of vectored thrust in forward flight

Between 1979 and 1984 forty-seven AV-8As were converted to AV-8C standard, which offered a number of improvements. The AV-8C was withdrawn from front-line service in 1987.

Unable to purchase military aircraft directly from British manufacturers, the Spanish Government ordered six AV-8As and two TAV-8As, later augmented by five more AV-8As, via the US Navy. The single-seater for Spain was designated Harrier Mk 55 or AV-8S, and the two-seater the Mk 58 or TAV-8S. The name ‘Matador’ was applied to both. Entering service in 1976, this made the Spanish Navy the first in the world to operate V/STOL aircraft.

The Spanish were impressed with their Harriers and replaced them with updated Harrier IIs, selling off the surviving seven AV-8S and two TAV-8S to Thailand in 1996. These were all refurbished before delivery. The Thai Navy operated them from ground bases as well as the light carrier Chakri Naruebet, which was bought new from Spain. In 2006 the Thais were reported to be considering the purchase of other first-generation airframes for spares and possibly additional operational aircraft.