Posted on 02/02/2011 8:23:46 PM PST by sukhoi-30mki
For sale on eBay, a real flight of fancy: Decommissioned Harrier with an asking price of just £69,999
By Ian Drury
Last updated at 1:42 AM on 3rd February 2011
It was the iconic fighter plane that helped Britain triumph in the Falklands War.
Now aircraft enthusiasts are being offered the chance to snap up a Harrier jump jet to keep in their back garden. The last of the first generation of the revolutionary aircraft is being sold on the auction website eBay.
Bargain: The world's last first generation two-seater Harrier jet is on sale on eBay at an asking price of £69,999 complete with both cannon and missile storage pods
For internet shoppers keen to buy this piece of military history, it’s as easy as ordering a book or CD – all they need do is click on ‘Add to cart’. However, first they will have to meet the asking price of £69,999.
The sale is particularly poignant as the Government announced to widespread outrage in October last year that it was scrapping the country’s fleet of Harrier jump jets to save money.
Considered one of the country’s greatest technological achievements, the British-built military jets were the first in the world to take off and land vertically. Introduced by the RAF in 1969, their ability to hover above the ground enabled the aircraft to fly in and out of battlefields that conventional jets could not reach.
The 700mph plane stamped itself on the national consciousness when it played a crucial role in the UK winning back the Falklands after they were invaded by Argentina in 1982.
It shot down 25 enemy aircraft without a single loss in air-to-air combat.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Will it fit my hangar?
Ping!!
DIBS!
I certainly hope a civilian owner doesn’t try a Vertical Take Off without a lot of training and experience.
Owning one is like marriage...It’s not the initial cost, it’s the upkeep.
I can afford the plane but not the fuel bill to fly it!!!!
The Harrier has always suffered from UPS.
Unexpected
Plummeting
Syndrome
It’s a cool plane, but operational losses have always been very high.
The fuel is nothing compared to the costs to get it airworthy and keep it that way.
In the dim and distant past, a friend owned a steamship line, and I knew about a Sea Dart that was available for the storage fees.
He was going to have it loaded on one of the ships until we discovered that a very significant percentage of those planes had self destructed in flight without warning.
Verily, the stuff of dreams - or nightmares.
PS The Russians have some interesting planes available very reasonably, if one remembers that fuel is dirt cheap in Russia and their engines are very thirsty.
My husband would probably love to have one to take out for a good head rush once in a while. If anyone wants to buy it for him, he would probably let you ride in the back.
Oh wait - is it a two or one seater?
This guy ejected from his, and damn near landed back in it!
“The fuel is nothing compared to the costs to get it airworthy and keep it that way.”
No doubt at least 10 hours of maintainance for every flight hour!
I’ll just keep my sights set on a Lancair P-4!
“Will it fit my hangar?”
Are the cannon, bombs, rockets and missiles included?;)
I do know that the week before I checked in, a seat tech had punched herself through the main hangers roof. Forgot to put the pins in the ejection seat before attempting to remove it for service apparently. Hole was still there as were the blood stains...
A Sea Dart was a pretty rare piece when developed. I think he would have made his money back by reselling to an aviation museum.
Exactly
ping
Training’s the rub. You get the jet for cheap, but then spend a boatload on training. And then there’s the maintenance issue. After 26 years in service, I’m sure it has a few things that need tending to.
Lucas electrics?
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