- Harrier, who first appeared in the early 1960s as the world's first practical V / STOL attack machine, was attracted to the US Marine Corps as a landing support fighter and was adopted under the name AV-8A.
- However, operational problems due to the payload and lack of cruising distance were not quite resolved, and the development type of AV-8A was required for a long time.
- The AV-8B that appeared under such circumstances had been drastically improved to meet the tactical demands of the US Marine Corps.
- The main wing was made larger, the cross section became a super critical airfoil, and LERX (leading edge extension) was provided at the base of the main wing, and it was aerodynamically improved.
- By heavy use of composite materials, the weight was kept to a minimum, and the auxiliary wheels under the wing moved from the wing tip to the central part of the main wing, and the wing hard point increased by two places.
- On the other hand, avionics was also greatly modernized, equipped with ARBS (angular velocity bombing system) practiced with A - 4 M Sky Hawk in the nose, the accuracy of weapon dumping remarkably improved, In addition to adopting a multipurpose display and the HOTAS method (capable of operating various systems without leaving the control stick and throttle), the canopy was enlarged and the maneuverability was improved by obtaining a wide field of vision.
- In addition, we improved thrust efficiency by adopting a zero, scarf and nozzle for the front air exhaust nozzle and front exhaust nozzle, and at the time of VTOL, a retractable front fence newly provided and a conventional detachable type strake with large size The Lift Improvement Devices (LIDS ... Lift Improvement Devices) have made it possible to effectively use ground return jet lift.
- In addition, the aerial receiving machine has retractable oil receiving probe.
- First deployment of the actual fighting unit was done to VMA - 331 in 1985.
- Harrier GR Mk.7 is an aircraft that made the AV-8B Harrier II Night Attack the British Air Force specification and is equipped with FLIR (Infrared Forward Monitoring Device) on the upper part of the aircraft and two pairs of ECM (electronic countermeasure means ) Equipped with a system antenna, making it possible to attack under bad weather and at night.
[data]
- Occupant: 1 person, overall width: 9.24 m, total length: 14.12 m, total height: 3.55 m
- Engine: Pegasus Mk. 105 (F - 402 - RR - 406 A) × 1 (thrust 9,875 kg × 1), maximum speed: 1,065 km / h
- First flight: September 6, 1978 (prototype)
( This is a machine translation. Please allow for possible misinterpretations in the text. )