The Rise & Fall of the Harrier Jump Jet

The Harrier jump jet was a unique, and to many iconic aircraft, one that could take off, hover and land like a helicopter but fly like a fast jet. Although many tried to build their own version, none other than the Soviet version, the YAK-38 lasted more that 15 years, the Harrier which is still in use 55 years after it first flew but just not in England, the country that created it. This is the rise and fall of the Harrier jump jet.

Written researched and presented by Paul Shillito
Images and footage : USAF, Bae, Lockheed, US DoD, CasualVideographer, RAF

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[charlesyarwood]

I'm an old man now and remember an air show at Farnborough where 4 Harriers on the ground faced the crowd. They rose vertically, bowed, turned and transitioned in different directions. I will never forget the overwhelming power and noise. It was there, previously that I also witnessed the Lightning's astonishing vertical climb. Heady days of national pride. Long gone, sadly. As an Air Cadet I also illegally went up in a Vulcan for a single circuit after maintenance.

[beefgoat]

As an American, the retiring of the Harrier is probably the British version of when the F-14 was retired. No one wanted to see it go, but it had been long since time. 😢

[PhilipMReeder]

In 1969, while in the family car in north St. Louis County near Lambert Airport with my father and sister, we noticed something above the highway that seemed to be hovering. At first we thought it was a helicopter, but then as we got closer, realized it wasn't. It was a Saturday afternoon, sunny and clear. The "craft" was orange and white and extremely loud. We were on N. Lindbergh Ave, which was a major overpass with a lot of traffic. The plane was maybe a hundred feet above one of the cloverleaf sections and the pilot was clearly visible. Every car in all directions slowed or stopped to watch this unbelievable sight. Seeing a helicopter hovering was nothing, but this plane just sat there above us nearly motionless. We and all around had never seen anything like it. Eventually it increased power and flew away. When we returned home and told the rest of our family what we had seen, including my mother, they laughed at us and thought we made it up.
It wasn't until many years later while looking at a Signal - "Harrier in Action" publication that I saw artwork showing the Harrier in its McDonnell Douglas test paint scheme, from that period, that I realized what the aircraft was.

[Madeyes]

Worked on them for 15 years & had 10 flights. The ex RAF & navy harrier engineers still meet up every year near their bases at wittering & Cottesmore. Loved working on them & definitely missed at air shows round the uk.

[jake]

Watch enough videos of Harriers landing vertically and the landings will seem quite abrupt, maybe even painful for the pilot.

This is by design: the Harrier often flipped upside-down right before touching down during vertical landings. Sadly, many pilots lost their lives to this unknown danger because they'd be crushed in the cockpit.

After the deaths, vertical landing protocol was changed. Harrier pilots were instructed to massively reduce thrust and drop down to deck before the dangerous flip-over, ground effect phenomenon could happen.

[Knightboat]

Excellent video, I worked on the UK Harriers (mainly GR7/9 T10/12) for 15 years right up to the bitter end in December 2010 and was there at RAF Cottesmore for the final flight, a sadly missed amazing machine..

[OiDivision]

16:22 Spanish Armada EAV-8B Harrier IIs have appeared at Farnborough in 2014, RIAT in 2019 and 2023, and are also set to appear this year (2024) as well. If you want to see a flying Harrier at a UK airshow, head to RAF Fairford.

[JMMC]

"Rise and fall" - I see what you did there.

[MostlyPennyCat]

With a father serving on HMS Invincible during the 90s, Pegasus was the soundtrack of my childhood.

[RobertHawthorne]

I worked with a US Marine helicopter squadron in the middle 70's. I remembered the Harrier when the Marines started using them being called internally the "Widow Maker". The only issue with the Harrier in those days was the piolet had a lot to do, correctly, getting off the ground and back down. One little mistake or slow reaction was deadly.

[StefanoBorini]

The feels. The feels. I loved the Harrier. There's one outside of RAF wittering. It always brings me a tear to my eye every time I drive on the A1.

[lightofjahs]

I've seen these doing a display at an airshow as a kid, and the noise when hovering is insane. Amazing aircraft though

[D.IronsWorld]

Pepsi Harrier stunt is one of the funniest thing around this jet aircraft 😃
As always great video, keep 'em coming.

[justandy]

I remember going to Riat - Fairford in 1997 with my family as a kid and the Harrier was the highlight for me. My enduring memory of it was that it was flipping LOUD!!
Hovering a short distance from the crowd doing all its display maneuvers I was in absolute awe of it.
The trouble is when its hovering, its practically on full power and absolutely guzzles the fuel. So they rarely use the thrust vectoring to take off. Plus it can't take off vertically with a full loadout, its just too heavy. But vertical landings on the other hand, they do it all the time.

[chrisb]

"..it's unlikely that we'll ever see them again at any airshows in the UK". Checks airshow listings, Spanish navy harrier flying at Fairford airshow in 4 weeks time!! 😁

[mattheide]

I finally saw a Harrier in person and I was struck by how small it is. One of my favorite military aircraft. Thank you for the video ❤

[KiwiHelpgeek]

I remember when a Hawker Harrier took part in the 50th celebration of the opening of the Auckland International Airport way back in 1992. It was great and I was lucky enough to be right in of the plane when it did it's signature bow to the crowd at the end of the display.

[meritamity]

When you're used to watching regular planes take off and land.. It was amazing to watch one of those things come to a stop mid-air.

[goodfes]

Excellent video. The design was so pure with one engine and surely there is still a place for another modernised harrier, but guess not. The sudden 2010 closure of UK fleet left a sour taste indeed

[patrickdurham]

Loved working around Harriers when I was in the Corps back in the 80s. I remember the first time I saw one was when we were ordered to secure a short section of road at Camp Lejuene. Fuel truck and a service truck came first and then 2 AV8-Bs showed up a few mimutes later. About 10 minutes on the ground and everything went back from where it came. Had to dust the sand off my bottom jaw from where it hit the ground.