Hawker Aircraft Limited
Hawker Harrier Gr.3 VTOL
Manufactured 1967–1970s
Introduction date 1 April 1969 First flight 28 December 1967
Hawker Aircraft Hawker Harrier Gr.3 Jump jet
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History Hawker Aircraft Limited
Hawker Harrier Gr.3 VTOL Jump Jet
Manufactured 1967–1970s, First flight 28 December 1967
The Hawker Siddeley Harrier is a British jet-powered attack aircraft designed and produced by the British aerospace company Hawker Siddeley. It was the first operational ground attack and reconnaissance aircraft with vertical/short takeoff and landing (V/STOL) capabilities and the only truly successful V/STOL design of its era.
It was the first of the Harrier series of aircraft, being developed directly from the Hawker Siddeley Kestrel prototype aircraft following the cancellation of a more advanced supersonic aircraft, the Hawker Siddeley P.1154. In the mid 1960s, the Harrier GR.1 and GR.3 variants were ordered by the British government for the Royal Air Force (RAF). The Harrier GR.1 made its first flight on 28 December 1967, and entered RAF service in April 1969. During the 1970s, the United States opted to procure the aircraft as the AV-8A; it was operated by the US Marine Corps (USMC).
Design
The Harrier was typically used as a ground attack aircraft, though its manoeuvrability also allows it to effectively engage other aircraft at short ranges. The Harrier is powered by a single Pegasus turbofan engine mounted in the fuselage. The engine is fitted with two air intakes and four vectoring nozzles for directing the thrust generated: two for the bypass flow and two for the jet exhaust. Several small reaction nozzles are also fitted, in the nose, tail and wingtips, for the purpose of balancing during vertical flight. It has two landing gear units on the fuselage and two outrigger landing gear units, one near each wing tip. The Harrier is equipped with four wing and three fuselage pylons for carrying a variety of weapons and external fuel tanks.
The Kestrel and the Harrier were similar in appearance, though approximately 90 per cent of the Kestrel's airframe was redesigned for the Harrier. The Harrier was powered by the more powerful Pegasus 6 engine; new air intakes with auxiliary blow-in doors were added to produce the required airflow at low speed. Its wing was modified to increase area and the landing gear was strengthened. Several hardpoints were installed, two under each wing and one underneath the fuselage; two 30 mm (1.2 in) ADEN cannon gun pods could also be fitted to the underside of the fuselage. The Harrier was outfitted with updated avionics to replace the basic systems used in the Kestrel; a navigational-attack system incorporating an inertial navigation system, originally for the P.1154, was installed and information was presented to the pilot by a head-up display and a moving map display.
Photo Gallery
Hawker Aircraft Limited
Hawker Harrier Gr.3 VTOL Jump Jet
Manufactured 1967–1970s, First flight 28 Dec 1967
Hawker Aircraft Limited
Hawker Harrier Gr.3 VTOL Jump Jet
Manufactured 1967–1970s, First flight 28 December 1967
General Info
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- Crew: 1
- Length: 46 ft 10 in (14.27 m)
- Wingspan: 25 ft 5 in (7.75 m)
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- 29 ft 8 in (9 m) with ferry tips fitted
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- Height: 11 ft 11 in (3.63 m)
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Powerplant
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- Empty weight: (6,139 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: (11,431 kg)
- Fuel capacity: (2,295 kg) internal
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- 2× 100 imp gal (120 US gal; 450 L), 790 lb (358 kg) drop-tanks for combat
- 2× 330 imp gal (400 US gal; 1,500 L), 2,608 lb (1,183 kg) drop-tanks for ferry
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- Powerplant: 1 × Rolls-Royce Pegasus 103 vectored-thrust high-bypass turbofan engine, 21,500 lbf (96 kN) thrust with water injection
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Performance
- Maximum speed: 635 kn (731 mph, 1,176 km/h) at sea level
- Maximum diving speed: Mach 1.3
- Combat range: 360 nmi (410 mi, 670 km) ho-lo-hi with 4,400 lb (1,996 kg) payload
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- 200 nmi (230 mi; 370 km) lo-lo with 4,400 lb (1,996 kg) payload
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- Endurance: 1 hour 30 minutes combat air patrol 100 nmi (120 mi; 190 km) from base.
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- 7 hours plus with one AAR
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- Service ceiling: 51,200 ft (15,600 m)
Armament
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- Guns: 2× 30 mm (1.18 in) ADEN cannon pods under the fuselage
- Hardpoints: 4× under-wing & 1× under-fuselage pylon stations with a capacity of 5,000 lb (2,268 kg), with provisions to carry combinations of:
- Bombs: A variety of unguided iron bombs, BL755 cluster bombs or laser-guided bombs
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Links to Youtube & Others
In the 1970s the British Aerospace Sea Harrier was developed from the Harrier for use by the Royal Navy (RN) on Invincible-class aircraft carriers. The Sea Harrier and the Harrier fought in the 1982 Falklands War, in which the aircraft proved to be crucial and versatile. The RN Sea Harriers provided fixed-wing air defence while the RAF Harriers focused on ground-attack missions in support of the advancing British land force. The Harrier was also extensively redesigned as the AV-8B Harrier II and British Aerospace Harrier II by the team of McDonnell Douglas and British Aerospace.
Hawker Aircraft Hawker Harrier Gr.3 Jump jet
Hawker Siddeley Harrier is a British jet-powered attack aircraft designed and produced by the British aerospace company Hawker Siddeley.
Youtube Link
Which requirements did pave the way for the design of the Harrier? Why did other vertical take-off and landing aircraft programmes in the West fail while the Harrier succeeded?
Read more in Hawker Aircraft Limited Hawker Harrier Gr.3 Jump Jet
