Tag Archives: harrier hide

Austere fields

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Back in the first days of military aviation, all airfields would be, in today’s terms, “austere.” Just a patch of grass to park the planes along with a flat of packed earth to take off/land with tents and maybe a requisitioned chalet for the crews to bed down in.

March 19, 1916, Columbus, N.M Curtiss JN-3s of the 1st Aero Squadron. Flying from Columbus into Mexico, they accompanied Pershing on the chase for Villa. Dig the red stars. 

Today, about the minimum amount of space needed to operate a modern strike aircraft starts at 3,500 feet of nice runway– and that is just for a lightly loaded aircraft.

However, the ability to use rough forward strips has long been an ace in the hole should the established bases be flattened in the first days of WWIII.

Harrier on a forest highway harrier hide Europe early 1980s

F-5A prototype, rough field trials

Eight A-10s from the 175th Wing on Jägala-Käravete Highway Estonia 

With that, check out the rough field capability of the Saab Gripen

The most important part of a Harrier’s selling point

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British air power in the Falklands Islands War in 1982 was limited to a handful of Harriers crammed on a pair of smallish carriers and a merchant ship, while the Argentines were able to throw all of their land-based A-4s and Mirage III/Vs at the British task force.

A low-flying Argentine Mirage attacks the British at San Carlos, Falklands, May 1982

However, the Brits did manage to use their “jump jets” to good effect, including creating a FOB ashore.

A Harrier hide.

The San Carlos Forward Operating Base was variously called West Wittering, HMS Sheathbill and Sid’s Strip (after Squadron Leader Syd Morris)

As noted by Think Defence:

The FOB was variously called West Wittering, HMS Sheathbill and Sid’s Strip (after Squadron Leader Syd Morris) depending on what service you belonged to. The final FOB, operated by 11 Squadron RE and commanded by the RAF had a 260m runway, dispersal areas for four aircraft, a separate vertical landing pad and a redesigned and reinstalled bulk fuel installation that could store 18,000 Litres.

More here.