Yuma, Arizona. A radar and a host of
other new technology was continuously
bolted on and the Harrier actually
started to redefine Marine tactical
aviation (TACAIR).
‘The number one question I get asked
when we take our jets to an airshow is,
‘what is this aircraft?’ When I tell them it’s
a Harrier they say, ‘we still have those?’
The Harrier probably hasn’t got the same
legacy here as it does in Britain.’ Lt Col
Brett ‘Nilla’ McGregor is the commanding
officer of the ‘Black Sheep’. Having flown
the AV-8B since 2002, including an
exchange tour in the UK from 2006-09
with No IV(AC) Squadron, McGregor
is in no doubt as to the aircraft’s
influence on Marine aviation.Above: A night
attack AV-8B
gets airborne
from MCAS Yuma.
These earlier
Harriers without
a radar are being
retired and the
Marine Corps will
operate a fleet
comprising solely
of the radar-
equipped AV-8B+.
Richard Collens
Below: Under the
sanctuary of the
sun shelter, a
‘Black Sheep’ pilot
performs a walk-
round check on a
‘radar bird’.
Jamie Hunter‘When I started flying this airplane in
2002 I learned close air support [CAS]
with freefall ordnance and having to look
outside the cockpit to try and find the
target in a dive,’ he says. ‘The lead aircraft
would roll in on the target and drop his
weapons. The bombs may have come
close, so the FAC [forward air controller]
would say, ‘from lead’s hits come east
100’. So you then roll in and try to correct,
gauging what 100m looks like from
6,000ft in a 30° dive! That’s about right,
and you drop six to eight bombs and
hope that one does some damage. Fast-
forward to today and we have an aircraft
with an amazing [Litening] targeting pod,
which can be carried under the wing but
we prefer the centerline. We also haveLt Col Brett
McGregor,
commanding
officer of
VMA-214.
USMCFEATURE ARTICLE // VMA-214
26 February 2018 //^ http://www.combataircraft.net
24-35 VMA-214 C.indd 26 13/12/2017 14:42