Mr Dow does have a short memory - I watched a Harrier crash and burn very recently in KAF...
Plus while we're at it RAPTOR has saved countless lives of UK servicemen by finding IEDs. Plus the Direct FIRES support the 27mm (which the so-called superior CAS Harrier doesn't have) has been used to good effect. Plus the Dual Mode Brimstone shots that Harrier can't do - Maverick has too big a bang for COIN in urban areas. Plus the speed that Tornado can react to a TIC on the other side of the AOR - about 30% faster.
Other than that, I have never read such a load of hoop! The Harrier did a good job as is the Tornado, however, if you really want to see a great armed-ISR on-call machine with mahoosive endurance then the REAPER is the choice of champions. It has dropped more ordinance than both FJs and flown over 18000hrs in support of Herrick in just over 3 years.
LJ