Last USMC AV-8B Harrier II jets retire. 55 years of service

[MikeD]

This past week, Marine fixed wing attack squadron VMA-223 “Bulldogs” at MCAS Cherry Point, NC, was decommissioned. They were the last AV-8B Harrier squadron in USMC service, and also the last pure Marine Attack squadron in the USMC. They will re-equip with the F-35B Lightning II, but will recommission as a Fighter-Attack squadron, VMFA-223.

The USMC first brought the Hawker-Siddley AV-8A Harrier I into service in 1971, replacing these in 1987 with the McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II. 55 years of service in the USMC.

The AV-8B Harrier remains in Italian and Spanish navy service.


View: https://youtube.com/watch?v=fXGrv0ixm9s&pp=ygUdRGlhbW9uZCA5IHByb2R1Y3Rpb25zIFZNQS0yMjM%3D&ra=m

 

[derg]

Two of my really good friends flew them. A blend of love and fear of a machine!

 

[Minuteman]

The replacement model can melt & erode the deck much more efficiently.

The Harrier served its weird mission well.

 

[MikeD]

Two of my really good friends flew them. A blend of love and fear of a machine!

The original A and C model Harrier I’s, with their shorter wingspan and smaller size, were trickier to fly and far more unforgiving, than the later B model Harrier IIs. Of the original 102 A and C model Harrier I’s the USMC purchased, 51 were lost in operational accidents.