For those RAE fans who may have missed the news item (it was good news so it did not get much of a spread) about the VAAC Harrier landing on Invincible on 15 May 2005 here is a pic
So what you might say, but you are actually looking at a pic of the world's first fully automatic recovery and VL of a jet aircraft to a ship. This is the culmination of a journey by RAE Aero Flight boffins (now paid by QinetiQ) that started in 1971 with a meeting at RAE on how to make jump jets easier to fly. I came away from that meeting quite excited by what I had heard and thought to myself (as one does driving back to Dunsfold) 'That will take them a couple or three years to sort out'. It took 34 years but what an achievement.......
I recently spoke to an RAE Aero Flight boffin Dennis Higton who in 1952 was tasked with the job of coming up with a rig to find out how you could control the attitude of a hovering jet aircraft by use of jets. His work led to the RAE being able to specify the control system for the R-R Bedstead and the rest is as they say history
Here is a diagram of his rig
Some flight control journey that - from Dennis's rig to the VAAC auto recovery - and all masterminded by RAE Aero Flight boffins.
Not surprisingly the US JSF programme observers on board Invincible were impressed. Especially as the VAAC (the oldest Harrier still flying) did 107 VLs over the course of the eight day trial.
I am sure PPRuNe members who visit this thread will want to join me in congratulating the entire VAAC team - especially Justin Paines who has been a leading pilot on the programme for several years and who was my safety pilot when I last flew the VAAC in 1999.