RAZBAM AV-8B Harrier II

Flight Sims
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Also no afterburner.

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strike that from the list.

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Seems like the CV is losing 5 knots for every launch.

Btw: Can you do ordinary running takeoffs and landings in a Harrier?

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Yes to both. A running take off is the preferred method as a matter of fact, as pure VTOL ops massively restrict ordinance and fuel available.

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As heavy as those things were, there had to have been an appreciable effect on the steam plant every time they threw one off the deck.

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It only weighed about 7 tons more than an F-14, when both were fully loaded. Empty, it was down to just one ton more.
The wingspan was 6 ft more, but when swept it was actually less than the Tomcat’s.

It’s not that the Tomcat was that much smaller and lighter, it just looked smaller and lighter.

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This sentence made me giddy.

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You should’ve felt it when a fully loaded Tomcat went off the bow.

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639

Now you are just flirting.

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640

So I asked this question in channel a week or two ago and it felt kinda awkward to be asking if a jet airplane could land conventionally. When I thought out why that might be I realized that it was because the landing gear just doesn’t seem arranged for rolling out like other planes.

So I am curious how often a rolling landing occurs? @Deacon211 if you are around could you maybe talk a bit about this? What is the protocol for landings in a Harrier based at a land base? Are hover landings always performed because weapons are expended and fuel is low? Does the old maxim that “you train like you fight” apply here? If you are operating out of MCAS Cherry Point are there dedicated pads for hover landings, or do you join the pattern with the Hornets and roll it out?

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I used to watch them land in the UK, and they seemed to just land normally at the local airbase. Perhaps just with a bit of downward nozzle is my guess. The flaps are enormous. The vertical landing even at an airshow was incredibly noisy, so the locals probably wanted them to act like normal airplanes most of the time. :slight_smile:

Would be interested in @Deacon211’s experience, as per usual, on all things Harrier.

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In franzak’s book I don’t recall him mentioning ever landing vertically. I think he even almost over runs at one point and also describes a mishap that happens to another pilot while on rollout. I’m sure loadout and field altitude (Afgan) are factored, it just gave me the impression that it really wasn’t used unless at an airshow or tactically necessary.

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Great book.
And yes, since the Harrier isn’t exactly stable landing vertically (especially not when loaded and you don’t want to drop all your unspent ordnance every time) you don’t do it unless necessary (which usually means: On a carrier). They use pretty short airfields though.

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Landing vertically is very fuel inefficient and highly dangerous since there is not much leeway for error. It is a useful feature in a combat situation though, so I can see why it was not used much except for training and airshows.

Although it looked damn cool at a airshow, the Harrier always stole the show.

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I saw one at a Chicago Air show many.many yrs ago
I remember it Hovered over the Water about 70’ doing 360 deg spins,Very Cool
but VERY LOUD!!!

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Thanks @Deacon211 for the reply and time. That’s really great info on how its done and the insights you provide us are never too long.

Let me apologize to you now for the month you are going to watch me repeatedly smear the jet across the landscape. Happily.

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Man
that should be a gilded post if ever! Great insights!

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Deacon, do you by any chance have CAP 2 and if so how does the harrier behave?

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