Harrier Italy 1

The BAe/McDonnell Douglas Harrier entered service with the RAF in 1969 and was the first successful ground attack aircraft capable of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) Thailand, Spain, and the USMC also took on the Harrier.

The Harrier is built around the Rolls-Royce Pegasus engine which has rotating nozzles to direct thrust backwards for flight or downwards for short take-off (STOL) or vertical take-off (VTOL) depending on load.

The Harrier has 4 to 8 under-wing pylons and a fuselage pylon and 2 x optional gun packs with 25mm or 30mm cannon.  The usual load-out is rocket pods, fuel tanks and/or bombs.

This example is an MDD AV-8B Harrier II of the Italian Navy 2012.