The short answer is yes.

The longer version is that in the early 1970’s Royal Navy engineer Lt Cdr Doug Taylor, wrote a paper on ways of launching heavier and higher performance aeroplanes from cheaper and smaller ships.

The ski-jump for the Harrier was one of several ideas included in his paper.

Doug won an award £20,000 (or thereabouts) for his efforts.

The idea stemmed from Lt. Cdr. D. R. Taylor RN in 1973

Sorry just realised JF beat me to it

I thought it was because someone accidentally ran a carrier into the dock at full speed and bent the deck up a few degrees. The 'new design' was the most plausible excuse he could come up with in the short amount of time available to him.

Fortunately for him, the rest, unlike his career, is history.

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