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[1992.367.001] Aircraft - 'AV-8C Aircraft, Bureau Number 158975' |
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AV-8C Aircraft, Bureau Number 158975
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| Accession Number |
1992.367.001 |
| Accession Date |
26/04/1990 |
| Creator |
| Creator |
Creator Role |
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Manufacturer |
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| Date Created |
1974 |
| Object Desciption |
Originally delivered as an AV-8A Harrier on 17 January 1974, the museum's display aircraft was redesignated an AV-8C in 1982, one of forty-seven AV-8As converted. Its initial operational service was in Marine Attack Squadron (VMA) 513, in which it served until 1982 before making a deployment in the amphibious assault ship Nassau (LHA 4) with VMA-231. Subsequently the aircraft deployed in the amphibious assault ship Guadalcanal (LPH 7) with VMA 513. It also logged a cruise in the amphibious assault ship Tarawa (LHA 1). |
| Object Notes |
RESTORATION 92-015, TRANSPORTATION 91-020 |
| Notes |
Originating in Great Britain, the Harrier attracted the interest of the United States Marine Corps in 1966 because of its unique ability to land and take off vertically like a helicopter. This enabled it to operate from makeshift airfields near the front lines or small deck amphibious assault ships, thereby providing a quick response in the close air support of ground troops. Yet, it was not until 1970 that the Marine Corps ordered 102 AV-8A Harriers and two 2-seat trainers (TAV-8A). These aircraft were essentially the same as British Royal Air Force Harriers, but with American avionics, flight control and weapons systems. The last of this batch was delivered in 1976, with the retirement of the final AV-8A coming a decade later.
Reluctant to have military aircraft manufactured outside of the United States, a licensing agreement was concluded between Hawker-Siddley (later British Aerospace) and McDonnell-Douglas for the manufacture of the follow-on AV-8B (Harrier II), designed to give the Harrier the payload, range, and accuracy of the most modern conventional aircraft. Testing was so successful that the initial production order of twelve AV-8Bs was placed before the program was completed, and delivered to the Marines in January 1984. While outwardly resembling the earlier Harriers, the AV-8B is a new and totally different aircraft that incorporates a higher thrust engine (21,500 lb. vs. 20,000 lb.) giving about the same speed, but allowing for a much greater payload. It has a new supercritical wing holding more fuel, six payload wing pylons instead of four, and a fuselage station. The cockpit is entirely different, similar to the F/A-18, with state of the-art electronics and a bubble canopy for better visibility.
With wing tanks half full, the AV-8B can lift about 7,000 lb. near vertically, or carry an external load of 9,200 lb. with a take-off run of about 850 ft. (it is customary to operate with a short take-off for more payload and land vertically when fuel and weapons have been expended). Payloads can include various bombs and other weapons, plus additional fuel, or a 25mm cannon with 300 rounds in two pods under the fuselage. It also has radar, a warning system, flare and chaff dispensers, night vision capability, Angle Rate Bombing Set (ARBS) for laser or TV guided weapons delivery, Heads Up Display (HUD), and provision for an electronic countermeasures pod. For battle conditions, it has its own ground starting and oxygen generating equipment. Devoid of an afterburner and with deflected jet blast, the AV-8B has a low infrared signature, making it a more difficult target for heat seeking missiles.
Flying the Harrier is unlike any other jet aircraft. It utilizes the concept of "Vectored Thrust," in which turbine by-pass air is routed to one of two pairs of nozzles at the wing roots, while jet exhaust is directed through the second pair. The combined "thrusts" enable the Harrier to either hover or fly normally depending on the position of the nozzles, which can be rotated in unison along the longitudinal axis anywhere from straight aft for forward flight to a little forward of straight down for hover. Nozzle positions are controlled by a single lever near the throttle. To control the aircraft in the hover mode, during which speed is so slow that elevator and rudder surfaces are not operable, a reaction control system cuts in which enables high pressure bleed air to be routed to exhaust ducts called "puffers" or "puff pipes" at the wing tips, nose and tail. When the pilot moves the stick forward, the puffer under the tail emits air causing the nose to go down; and when he pulls it back, the puffer under the nose emits air causing the nose to go up. Similarly, side-to-side movement of the stick operates the puffers at the wing tips (inversely of course) causing the plane to roll; and puffers at the tail operated by the rudder pedals, blow air sideways to control "yaw." As far as the pilot is concerned, the controls continue to operate normally.
British Harriers flew combat missions in the Falkland Islands War in 1982, during which forty-two were deployed for ground support, air defense, ship strikes, and reconnaissance. They shot down at least twenty enemy planes (Mirages, A-4 Skyhawks, and a Canberra bomber) without a single air-to-air loss. Five were lost to ground fire and four to adverse weather. The first Marine Corps aircraft went to war almost twenty years later. During Operation Desert Storm, a total of eighty-six Harriers flew combat missions from both ship and shore, logging 3,380 sorties for 4,038 hours, and delivering over 5.95 millions lbs of ordnance. Harriers also flew combat missions in support of Operation Allied Force, the sustained NATO air campaign against Kosovo in 1999, and continue to fly in support of operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Specifications
Manufacturer: McDonnell Douglas Corporation (now Boeing)
Dimensions: Length: 45 ft., 7 in.; Height: 11 ft., 11 in.; Wingspan: 25 ft., 3 in.
Weights: Empty: 13,086 lb.; Gross: 25,200 lb.
Power Plant: One 21,500 lb. static thrust Rolls-Royce Pegasus 103F402-RR-401 Performance: Maximum Speed: 730 M.P.H., Service Ceiling: 51,200 ft.; Range: 414 miles
Armament: Provisions for 25mm cannon, Sidewinder and Maverick missiles, bombs, and rockets
Crew: Pilot
Aircraft in the Museum Collection
AV-8C (BuNo 158975) - On indoor static display
AV-8A (BuNo 15239) - On loan to San Diego Aerospace Museum, San Diego, California
AV-8A (BuNo 158969) - On loan to Naval Weapons Test Squadron, Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, California
AV-8C (BuNo 159241) - On loan to Pima Air and Space Museum, Pima, Arizona
AV-8C (BuNo 158387) - On loan to NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California
AV-8C (BuNo 158977) - On loan to Museum of Flight, Seattle, Washington |
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