WARNING! Contains Sharkey Porn...
 

And without an iPod in sight...:E

Oh dear, comparing a Whistling Sh!tcan to a Tomcat, oh dear, oh dear, oh dear :=

An F-14A catapult launch was one of the most spectacular sights in aviation. Sea Harrier not so much.:hmm: Still did the job when needed though...

What a shame...

Some nice footage (almost) completely spoilt by the enduring premise that to be a naval aviator you must have something to do with the USN Fighter Weapons School. Change the title and music and you have a reasonable document...albeit of a tired jet with a great combat record coming out for one last bow. (Why was there no bow? That would have been good.;))

I wonder, in the gathering dusk of its career, exactly what the video producer thought the FA2 and the chaps who maintained and flew it had to prove? Or how FAA FW was somehow preserved as a result of Marstrike 05! (History would appear to show otherwise!)

Interesting.


Could someone tell me what the deck crew person is doing
at about 3.15. Looks like some silver metal in his hand
as he does something near the intake.

Actually the RN QFI course did have a lot to do with Top Gun. Well done to MoorKey for the recording. Looking forward to 800NAS Flying of HMS Queen Elizabeth at the end of the decade.

Just a guess, spraying some of the salt off the fan?

Of course Moorkey was an 800NAS maintainer before he ever got to 801! :ok:

Not exactly Topgun, but the only time the FA2 went to Nellis for Red Flag they played Red Air with the USAF Aggressor Vipers. Even bagged some unwary F-15s!

Orca, I would say the producer was thinking of doing something for the other lads on the Squadron, never expecting it to end up on Youtube. Nothing to prove, just something to remember.

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Great det that was too. We also flew two days of sorties with the GR7 in and out of Afghanistan, in support of 1 Sqn, from the boat at the end of the exercise.

It's a can of "Start Ya Bastard"...:E

It is a shame the way aircraft such as SHAR are routinely denigrated, just because they belong to another generation. At the time (and that is what counts) it was a superb aircraft and did what it said on the tin, in spades. It has had its day, but what a day it was.

Nicely made movie, well-edited to the music.

How long will it be before anyone can ever make a similar movie, starring the UK's F-35B? Or F/A-18C/D? Or Rafale?

A great shame that the RN killed off the excellent Sea Harrier F/A 2. AMRAAM + Link16 gave it a potent capability light years ahead of Sharkey's FRS 1.

Well said Beags, she was an easy aircraft to work too with as generally she was very serviceable (and if broke, easy to fix).... as was the GR5/7/9. Despite being an old bird, she was the only British fast jet we worked with (until Typhoon) who could/did tank a few thousand feet above the rest making life a lot quicker and less tanker dependant for all.

No idea why so many are so spiteful about the Sea Harrier/Harrier force.

Indeed, lj101, it was good to back up at a reasonable altitude when tanking the Sea Harrier. But as for trails with the GR3, the 'Sondrestrom out' single hose plan was....interesting!

Not really all that old - and often a more mature bird is more fun anyway....:E As many VC10 air engineers will be able to confirm - in all senses of the word!

I first encountered the Sea Harrier in March 1981 after finishing my TWU course at Chivenor. 800 NAS wanted some opposition during a work-up phase, so I went along on a couple of DACT trips with the acknowledged doggers aces of the base - they found it a very slippery little beast to fight against.

I think it always worth repeating that, due to the way the Defence budget was constructed in the mid-late 70s, the RN (FAA in this case) understandably committed to a series of major procurements simultaneously.



Just as an example, at the outbreak of hostilities in 1982, Lynx, Sea King and SHAR radars were still in development. Sea Spray, Sea Searcher and Blue Fox, respectively. Orders were issued to shut down development and launch production, regardless of design maturity. Sea Spray was the most mature, and production was “simply” ramped up. But Sea Searcher and Blue Fox still had about a year to run on main development.



In the case of SHAR/Blue Fox, 6 of the 8 B Models (which belonged to MoD(PE), not the FAA) were delivered and fitted. These 6 were roughly compatible/interchangeable, but definitely not production standard. The remaining 2 were too different and would have been dangerous to use. Training in their use was minimal. Some design features hadn’t been included yet were in the training manual, and vice versa. What Sharkey and his mates did with this immature design was nothing short of incredible. I’m not sure this minor, but quite important detail is well publicised, but it explains much. The most incredible fact was these B Models stayed in service for over 8 years, before being returned to the factory for the Mid Life Upgrade. This is a great testament to the quality of design and reliability.



In all cases, a Continuing Design Services (CDS) contract was required, to finish main development, incorporate and modify. Sea Spray was minor, although important to reliability, but the RN was denied funding and the Dutch reaped the benefit. The final year of Sea Searcher development was spread over the next 10 years as a “savings” measure, and to this day there are switches on the Controllers with no wiring behind them (a long time source of frustration and numerous MF760s). Most of the CDS was done on the quiet, behind the beancounters’ backs. Blue Fox was the one that was properly funded, progressed and completed to a reasonable timescale; partially due to the Blue Vixen development work that had commenced. This resulted in a major upgrade in 1984 (the “Jamming Package”), then the Mid Life Upgrade (I/A). It was widely regarded as best in class, and despite a 35 year old design would probably still be a viable piece of kit for many potential users. When it was eventually replaced by Blue Vixen, it still exceeded the best spec the RAF could dream up for the Bucc replacement!



Kind of puts the old “Blue Circle” balls in context!

Looks like the ground crew chap might have been spraying WD40 down the intake as it was running down. The Nimrod's and it's Speys were treated to the wash and then the engines were similarly treated with a large spray unit. Quite a pungent smell as you came down the steps.

Thanks to those who answered my question.

TBW ...

Nice post and vid :D

Just to help ... if you delete in edit mode the YOUTUBE and /YOUTUBE in square brackets at the beginning and end of your YouTube URL you will get just the one embedded vid screen :ok:

Very enjoyable. Thank you for sharing.

Yep, very nice vid and well edited :ok:
Which station was shown at the end? looked a bit like Cottesmore to me.