Despite having announced plans to replace the Royal Navy's BAE Systems Sea Harrier FA2s with ground-attack dedicated BAE/ Boeing Harriers, the UK Ministry of Defence has not signed contracts with the manufacturers to upgrade fighters from GR7 to GR9 standard.
BAE is already working on several upgrades, including the introduction of the more powerful Rolls-Royce Pegasus Mk107 engine on 30 aircraft (which will become GR7As and later GR9As), the first of which will be delivered next year.
GR7 to GR9 modifications will include integration of ASRAAM, Brimstone, a General Dynamics UK1760-databus standard stores management system, the MBDA Storm Shadow, a Northrop Grumman inertial/GPS satellite navigation system, improved cockpit displays and a new open-architecture mission system. Changes will be introduced over a four-phase programme from 2004.
To counter known structural problems with the Harrier's rear fuselage, BAE says it offered the MoD four options, and the most sophisticated scheme has been selected. This is similar to Boeing's AV-8B-Plus fuselage, and will improve the airframe life to the planned 2015 out-of-service date.
BAE says it expects to upgrade most of the 80 GR7/7As, while the T10 trainers will be modified to T12 standard, incorporating most changes, but not the more powerful engine and new weapons.
Retiring the Sea Harrier will also see the disbanding of an RAF GR7 squadron and an operational conversion unit (OCU) in 2004-6, says the MoD. The RAF has three Harrier squadrons and an OCU, while the RN has two squadrons and a training unit.
The Sea Harrier is the navy's sole fixed-wing air defence asset, but the MoD says that, while a layer of fleet air defence is removed, the anti-air warfare dedicated Type 45 warship will enter service from 2007. This will be sufficient for the envisaged littoral operations until the Joint Strike Fighter enters service in 2012, says the MoD.
Source: Flight International
