Harrier Jump Jets - They're Back!!

[Cyclone]

The US have been using Harriers for years. I was sure that I heard that the Marine Corps had declared them obsolete but obviously I was wrong.

 

The Harriers are the only type that can be used on British navy carriers as they have no flight decks that can be used by conventional aircraft. Maybe the RN is planning on scrappings it's carriers also

 

Try to keep up, we're building 2 (or maybe 1) new aircraft carrier, and they'll fly the F35B if they can fix the problem of it melting the deck, they've also got the capability to have an electric catapult and arrestor gear added to fly the C variant (cheaper, more reliable).

[MrSmith]

http://www.naval-technology.com/projects/cvf/

The new UK CVF Royal Navy aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, are expected to enter service in 2016 and 2018.

 

I think the government is considering mothballing one of them when it finished.

[Lutfsl]

But the bad news is they are being purchased by the US Marine Corps air arm which expects to use them operationally into the 2020s

 

Harrier Jump Jets Un-retired

 

"The sale of the Harriers is bound to raise fresh questions about the wisdom of retiring the much-admired aircraft, which the Americans intend to use until 2025."

 

"We're taking advantage of all the money the Brits have spent on them," he said. "It's like we're buying a car with maybe 15,000 miles on it. These are very good platforms."

 

Retiring these planes looks like a very, very serious mistake by the government. We were led to believe these planes were no longer viable. The truth is they've got years more life in them. I don't buy the nonsense about us not being able to afford them, not when the entire operational cost and way more besides could have been met by making the likes of Vodafone meet its tax obligations.

 

It's totally pathetic.