Latest news from Art 23/04:
A blind man could have seen this coming. After two months of waiting
for our hydraulic lines to be repaired in Washington State, they
finally returned. The mechanics tore open the boxes and eagerly
inspected them. Then, immediately declared the lines unserviceable.
The welds were clearly unacceptable for aviation applications, based
upon the visual inspection alone. What a disappointment. However, we
needed a second opinion.
We consulted with an expert from Pax River, familiar with welds of this
type and high-pressure lines for aircraft-grade usage. He instantly
concurred with the mechanic’s recommendation but went further. He
guaranteed the welds would fail and the lines are not salvageable.
They are trash. They may be usable as a template, but not to install on
the airframe. In short, we’ve wasted two months.
So we were back to square one. We were able to locate spares in the UK
and as soon as they arrived, had them installed in the airframe. The
old, worn, out, cracked hydraulic line - - - the source of all our
woes - - - was dated 1979. It couldn’t have possibly lasted much
longer. So we replaced them with brand-new, fresh, original equipment
lines - - - dated 1980. When dealing with this vintage of Harriers,
“new” is a relative term.
These past several weekends were a tremendous success. We serviced the
hydraulic system and cycled the landing gear manually with a hand pump
to check for connectivity and leaks. Then we applied our hydraulic
generator to further exercise the system. We also completed
installation of our landing gear emergency extension system. We
replaced the Explosive Start Valve, which we were unable to obtain,
with an electrical solenoid valve. Despite having some minor
difficulties fabricating the tight tolerance lines, the valve was
installed and ready for testing. Our “new” system is similar in design
to the AV-8B and other modern aircraft.
After numerous cycles of our landing gear under manual and powered
hydraulic power, we were ready for the first test of our emergency
extension system. Corry Duffield, one of our mechanics from Cherry
Point, had the honor to actually pull the handle and try the system for
the very first time. The rest of the crew elected to watch from a SAFE
distance, since we really didn’t know what would happen. Even when we
DO know what to expect, the results are often colorful. This time
could be VERY colorful…
As soon as he actuated the system, the gear came down in locked within
a matter of seconds! Boom, boom, boom, boom - all four down and
locked! One small note: when the Harrier landing gear are extended by
emergency means, the aircraft “spits” a small amount of hydraulic fluid
overboard, out a side vent. We were well aware of this, although it
could be a shock to the uninitiated. It’s a mess we are happy to
clean. You can see in one photo that the Sea Harrier has marked its
territory on the hangar floor in bright red. We know exactly where to
ask any curious on-lookers to stand for the next exercise of the system.
After extending the landing gear by the emergency system, we need to
completely bleed all the air from the hydraulic system. This is a LOT
of work. Each actuator has two sides - - an up and a down
side. Both sides must be completely free of air, and we just
introduced 3,000 psi of dry nitrogen into a closed system. It’s messy
and tedious, but part of the maintenance. Plus, we’ll need to repeat
this entire evolution (blow the gear down, bleed the system, service
the system, and repeat) several times to ensure that we’ve got the
system absolutely perfect. All of our landing gear actuators will
probably be ready for overhaul when we’re ready to fly, but we’ll know
they work.
The sheet metal work on the SHAR is progressing. Lots of rivets need
to be drilled, metal straightened, parts realigned, pulled and prodded
back into the correct shape, and then re-riveted. That all takes time
and there are LOTS of rivets. The landing gear doors are new, the
radome is new, and the pitot probe is new. But this is a hand-built
aircraft and everything requires careful fitting. Although I plan to
make mostly left-hand turns, the airplane still needs to be perfectly
straight, before we fly.
We’ve taken this down time to remove the Head Up Display (HUD). We
were missing a few of the weapons-related boxes that feed into the HUD
and the HUD did not work for either of the first flights, except in the
Standby Mode. The HUD alone weighs about 15 pounds and is basically a
1970’s computer (think Commodore 64). It is heavy and nearly useless
for civilian flying. Instead, we’ve now installed a civilian
Electronic Flight Instrument System (EFIS), which can do what the HUD
did, plus more, and weighs little more than a cell phone. We’ll also
clean up some of the other outstanding discrepancies and fix a few
minor things.
We also have a plan to augment our spares support program. Our
original program was simple: (1) panic, (2) find something that would
work, and (3) hope they’d take a check. Not the most effective means
of supporting a Harrier, although it’s what the Marines have been doing
for years.
The answer is equally simple: acquire a spare airplane. Exactly what
every Harrier owner needs, is a spare Harrier. I now have the pleasure
to announce that we have acquired a complete, spare aircraft,
plus two engines from a museum in Seattle. They had two Harriers and
wanted to open up some floor space. It was our good fortune to be in
the right place at the right time.
The NEW airplane is a GR-3, ground attack version, built for the Royal
Air Force and similar vintage of the Sea Harrier. It appears complete,
plus some. Even though these airplanes are different models (there
were over 45 different Harrier variants) they are 95% common. We now
have a source of spares for just about anything that could go wrong on
the SHAR, maybe even a spare engine. I’m quite sure that our next
requirement will be for one of the 5% parts, unique only to the Sea
Harrier and we won’t have it. But for now, we have some comfort of a
good source of spares. Just the source for fasteners alone is worth it
to us.
The GR may also have the potential to be another flying airplane. It’s
complete and as far as we’ve inspected, in great shape. However, we’ve
got our hands full with one Harrier, so the GR will have to be a static
display or parts donor for now. The cockpit and ejection seat have
been verified completely inert. We’ve positioned a step ladder
adjacent to the GR’s cockpit, in case visitors would like the
opportunity to climb aboard. After all, it isn’t every day that the
one can climb in a Harrier, and with the LIVE ejection seat in the Sea
Harrier, we cannot permit open entry.
The GR will be restored, bit-by-bit, as an AV-8A, which is exactly the
airplane I flew in the Marine Corps. Eventually, this airplane will be
painted in the squadron colors of VMA-231, the “Ace of Spades”
squadron, which was my first Harrier operational squadron.
Incidentally, VMA-231 is known as “the Oldest Squadron in the Marine
Corps” and can trace its roots back to Marine Aviators of WWI known as
the Northern Bombing Group. It has a long and proud heritage and is
still flying Harriers, albeit the AV-8B. The Ace of Spades squadron
emblem is already on the new Harrier.
The cockpit of the GR had been sealed and unopened since the museum
acquired it, several years ago and who knows how long prior to that.
The museum apparently hadn’t opened the canopy until we arrived to
inspect it at purchase. After many, many years, the canopy was opened
and I climbed aboard. The cockpit smelled the same as the last AV-8A I
flew. They seem to have a unique “jet smell,” perhaps due to the
upholstery or electronics. The old joke of “to a midget, all
elevators smell the same….” may also apply.
With a little luck, we could be back in the air by the end of the month.
For more info on the Shar and the GR Arts wbsite is at http://www.nallsaviation.com/