AV-8B Harrier II (one) aircraft photo gallery

AV-8B Harrier II Wallpaper 1 | AirSkyBuster.
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The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) AV-8B Harrier II is a second-generation vertical/short takeoff and landing (V/STOL) ground-attack aircraft. An Anglo-American development of the British Hawker Siddeley Harrier, the Harrier II is the final member of the Harrier family that started with the Hawker Siddeley P.1127 in the early 1960s. AV-8B Harrier II Wallpaper 1 is primarily used for light attack or multi-role missions, and is typically operated from small aircraft carriers, large amphibious assault ships and simple forward operating bases. The British Aerospace Harrier II variant of the AV-8B was developed for the British military. The AV-8B is used by the United States Marine Corps (USMC), Spanish Navy and Italian Navy. The TAV-8B is a dedicated two-seat trainer version. The Harrier II and other models of the Harrier family have been called "Jump Jets". The AV-8B was extensively redesigned by McDonnell Douglas from the earlier AV-8A/C Harrier. It has a new wing, an elevated cockpit, a redesigned fuselage, and other structural and aerodynamic refinements. The number of hardpoints was increased from five to seven. Later upgrades, which resulted in the AV-8B(NA) and AV-8B Harrier II Plus, added radar and night-attack capabilities. British Aerospace joined the improved Harrier project in the early 1980s. Since corporate mergers in the 1990s, Boeing and BAE Systems have jointly supported the program. AV-8Bs have participated in numerous conflicts, providing close air support for ground troops and performing armed reconnaissance, proving themselves versatile assets. US Army General Norman Schwarzkopf named the USMC Harrier as one of the seven most important weapons of the Gulf War. The aircraft took part in combat during the Iraq War beginning in 2003. The Harrier II has served in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan since 2001, and was used in Operation Odyssey Dawn in Libya in 2011. Italian and Spanish Harrier IIs participated in overseas conflicts, in conjunction with NATO coalitions. American and Italian AV-8B Harrier II Wallpaper 1 are expected to be replaced by the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, as the first-generation Harriers entered service with the Royal Air Force (RAF) and United States Marine Corps (USMC), it became increasingly apparent that they were handicapped in range and payload. The AV-8A, the American designation for the Hawker Siddeley Harrier, in STOL configuration, could only carry less than half the 4,000 lb (1,800 kg) payload of the A-4 over a radius smaller than that of the diminutive aircraft. To address this issue, in 1973 Hawker Siddeley and McDonnell Douglas began joint development of a more capable version of the Harrier. Early efforts concentrated on an improved Pegasus engine, designated Pegasus 15, which was undergoing testing by Bristol Siddeley. The engine was more powerful but had a diameter 2.75 inches (70 mm) larger, too big to readily fit into the Harrier. A joint American and British team completed a project document defining an Advanced Harrier with the Pegasus 15 engine in December 1973. The Advanced Harrier was intended to replace original RAF and USMC Harriers, as well as the latter's A-4. The aim of the Advanced Harrier was to double the AV-8's payload and range capabilities, and was therefore unofficially named "AV-16". The British government pulled out of the project in March 1975 due to decreased defense funding, rising costs, and a small 60-aircraft requirement by the RAF. The US was unwilling to fund development by itself, and ended the project later that year. AV-8B Harrier II Wallpaper 1

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Labels: AV-8B Harrier II, Fighter/Attack