USN Sea Harrier II - Done

[Spino]

Been a while since I've posted on this one, so I figured I'd just start a new topic.  As a quick refresher, the build is based on a Tamiya Sea Harrier FRS.1, but I lengthened the wings and upped the number of pylons to nine.  Loadout was originally going to be two Sidewinders, two GBU-38s, two drop tanks, and two APKWS rocket pods, but the Sidewinders didn't turn out as well as I had hoped and I just didn't feel right about having a Harrier with a radar and no radar missiles.  So the Sidewinders and GBUs are gone, replaced by four AIM-120B AMRAAMs, and the APKWS pods moved to just outboard of the drop tanks.  The LANTIRN pod is staying as well.  Custom decals have finally been printed and applied.  Here's the backstory as a refresher:

History: Impressed by the British idea of taking STOVL aircraft to sea on a small, low cost ship, the US Navy re-commissioned two of its old Essex class carriers in the early 1980s.  These ships had their arrestor gear and catapults removed and Sea Sparrow missile launchers added for defensive purposes.  The air wing of these ships was initially composed of SH-60B Seahawk helicopters and USMC AV-8A Harriers, but this placed a strain on the USMC Harrier fleet.  Compounding the problem was the lack of onboard radar in the Harrier, which limited the air defense capabilities of the light carriers.

To alleviate this issue and increase the capabilities of the light strike carriers, as they were now called, the US Navy ordered a modified version of the Sea Harrier.  Designated AV-8D since B and C were assigned to the Harrier II (then in development) and improved Harrier variants respectively, the new aircraft had extended wings and nine weapons stations, nearly double the number of the AV-8A and Sea Harrier.

To alleviate the air defense problem for the light carriers, AV-8Ds were fitted with a modified variant of the APG-73 radar from the F/A-18 Hornet, in place of the British Blue Fox radar.  Designated APG-74, this radar was compatible with the AIM-7 Sparrow and AIM-120 AMRAAM air to air missiles, and fitted inside the existing Sea Harrier nose section with some reorganization of internal systems and a slightly reduced antenna size.  An infrared search and track system was added on top of the nose.  The AV-8D was named "Sea Harrier II" to reflect its increased capabilities.

To increase the top speed of the Sea Harrier II, the original Rolls Royce Pegasus engine was replaced with a modified variant of the Harrier II's F402 engine with plenum chamber burning, delivering up to 28,000lb of thrust.  This allowed the Sea Harrier IIs to fly at speeds of nearly Mach 1, considerably faster than the original subsonic Harrier design.

The ground attack capabilities of the Sea Harrier II were also drastically expanded with the addition of the Litening targeting pod, allowing carriage of laser-guided munitions.  The 30mm ADEN gun pods from the Sea Harrier were retained on early production aircraft, but the low ammunition count was seen as unsatisfactory, and the ADEN pods were eventually replaced by a new gun pod set with a 30mm M230 and 100 rounds in the starboard pod and 400 rounds of ammunition in the port side pod.  Alternatively, the GAU-25 pods of the Harrier II could be fitted.

With the final retirement of the light carriers in the late 1990s, the Sea Harrier II fleet suddenly had no ships to deploy on.  Most of the 115 aircraft were retired and sent to the "boneyard" at Davis Monthan AFB for storage, but a few soldiered on as air defense planes for the Tarawa class LHAs until they were finally replaced by the radar-equipped AV-8B Harrier II+.

In the early 2020s, with war in the Pacific very likely and the F-35B fleet potentially open to cyberattack in time of war, the Sea Harrier II fleet was dusted off and returned to service.  Upgraded with an AESA variant of the APG-74 radar and Scorpion Helmet Mounted Displays, the Sea Harrier IIs continue to provide a transonic strike fighter capability to the LHA fleet alongside the remaining Harrier II+ aircraft.

Specifications:

Crew: 1
Length: 45 feet
Wingspan: 32 feet 9 inches
Empty Weight: 14,021lb
Loaded Weight: 23,000lb
Max Rolling Takeoff Weight: 31,500lb
Max Vertical Takeoff Weight: 20,755lb
Max Speed: 630 knots (Mach 0.94)
Range: 1200nm
Combat Range: 300nm
Wing Loading: 90.24 lb/sq ft

Armament: 1 25mm GAU-25 Equalizer rotary cannon pod with 300 rounds, or 1 30mm M230 cannon pod with 500 rounds, 9 hardpoints for up to 9,200lb of stores; including up to six AIM-120 AMRAAM and up to four AIM-9 Sidewinder air to air missiles, Paveway and JDAM precision guided bombs, and APKWS rockets.

Will post photos once I get the AMRAAMs painted and fitted.

[PR19_Kit]

Sounds all very plausible, with one exception. 

Getting a Harrier of any version above M 1.0 would be a problem with those MONSTER intakes, plenum chamber burning or not. 

[Spino]

I was wondering about that tbh.  I had copied the backstory right out of my other post about this, and I saw that and thought "what was I thinking".  Revised down to Mach 1.0 for now.  In theory that should be possible, in a dive if not in level flight.

[jcf]

Perhaps some sort of ramp arrangement added to the intakes to better tailor the airflow for different speed regimes.

Limit the load to AIM-120s only in the interceptor role, no LANTIRN pod etc. Drop tanks to increase range and reduced ammunition for the cannon, or leave it off altogether.
Skijump for takeoff, PCB only used when needed in the mission profile because it would suck fuel. Rolling landing, VTOL only when necessary and not using PCB.

In the strike role loadout specific to mission requirements and range to target, as usual the farther away the less that can be carried.
Skijump for takeoff, again PCB only used when needed, probably when exiting after a strike when relatively clean and again a rolling landing or VTOL without PCB.

Be aware that an increased wingspan will decrease VTOL performance.

[Spino]

Perhaps some sort of ramp arrangement added to the intakes to better tailor the airflow for different speed regimes.

Limit the load to AIM-120s only in the interceptor role, no LANTIRN pod etc. Drop tanks to increase range and reduced ammunition for the cannon, or leave it off altogether.

I suppose I could add a DSI bump (Diverterless Supersonic Inlet) to each intake.  As for the APKWS, my original thought with those was to use them for dealing with swarms of drones (the US Military recently developed a new kit for APKWS that allows it to be use as an air-to-air missile for exactly that purpose).  AMRAAMs would presumably then be of the C/D variety, but USN could also just be using up stocks of older AMRAAMs on a relatively low-capability platform.

[Spino]

Went and edited the backstory a bit, it's now a transonic aircraft capable of Mach 0.94.

[Spino]

All right gents, I'm calling this one done.  Here are the photos.

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[kerick]

Nice!

[chrisonord]

Very cool 

[Joe C-P]

I like it.