Originally Posted by
tartare
Wots the Harrier reversal story?
Now, this is no s**t. Or, once upon a time...
In 1972
fantom was up in XV431 and saw a Harrier back at Brüggen practicing for an upcoming air display.
fantom wanted to have a little fun and buzz the Harrier while it was in the hover doing its turns for the imaginary crowd.
'Time to buzz the Harrier' 'No
fantom, this is not a good idea.' What could possibly go wrong?
XV431 made the impressive high speed pass just as the Harrier did its reverse flight demo and the aircraft collided.
The Harrier driver ejected and the Phantom limped back up with several feet of the left wing missing. A successful arrested landing was made in the F-4 and
fantom had to face the music of a General Court Martial for his poor choices that morning.
fantom claims that the paperwork for the GCM had already been filled out before he landed which might only be a minor exagerration.
The GCM launched
fantom on a successful peripatetic civilian career flying light twins, 727s, A320s and A330s in the UK and the Middle East.
I've heard multiple versions of this legendary tale over the years including one from a Nimrod crew in Gibraltar in the late 1970s. However I haven't found a listing of the Harrier loss or any other details so this story may be totally apocryphal.
Or not.
