英國이 운용한 Harrier 전투기를 도입하는 美 해병대

 

 

 

Harriers sold to the US for £110m

Defencemanagement.com

24 November 2011

 

The UK has sold 72 Harrier jump jets to the US Marine Corps for £110m ($180m) to provide spare parts for the Marines' AV-8B Harrier fleet, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed.

 

The deal includes the spare parts and support equipment that the UK would have used to maintain the Harrier fleet. Reports in the US earlier this week said that the spares deal alone was worth $50m.

 

Two of the UK's Harriers have been kept in Britain to be offered to naval museums.

 

The MoD says the scrapping and sale of Britain's Harriers will save around £1bn overall, and Ministers have trumpeted the deal as providing "great value for both countries".

 

The scrapping of the Harrier fleet was announced in the Strategic Defence and Security Review in October 2010, and left the country without fixed wing carrier strike capability until the introduction of the Joint Strike Fighter and Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers at the end of the decade.

 

The MoD says the Harriers' fate was sealed by cuts prior to the SDSR which "left the Harrier force too small to carry out enduring operations in Afghanistan whilst maintaining the contingent capability we need for other operations such as Libya".

 

The sale will "enable investment in a more modern and capable mixed fast jet fleet", a ministry spokesman said.

 

The UK has yet to take delivery of its first Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), which was finished at Lockheed Martin's Fort Worth, Texas, factory earlier this week. Final fleet numbers for the UK's JSF fleet have yet to be confirmed.

 

Minister for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology Peter Luff said that Harrier had served the UK with "great distinction" but that "retiring it eight years earlier than planned was the right decision".

 

"Had we taken the decision in the SDSR to decommission Tornado instead we would not have been able to carry out the missions that were required simultaneously in Libya and Afghanistan. It was essential to retire older, less capable aircraft to allow us to invest in more modern, cutting-edge fast jets.

 

"As our operations over Libya proved, we have the capability to project decisive air power and can utilise our extensive basing and over-flight rights to great effect.

 

"The sale of Harrier is evidence of our commitment to working closely with our allies and represents a good deal for both countries."

 

 

  RAF Harrier GR7 ⓒ Crown Copyright / MoD 2002

 

  RAF Harrier GR7 ⓒ Crown Copyright / MoD 2006

 

  RAF Harrier GR7 ⓒ Crown Copyright / MoD 2008

 

  RAF Harrier GR9 ⓒ Crown Copyright / MoD 2009

 

  RAF Harrier T10 ⓒ Crown Copyright / MoD 2004