Spanish Harrier - Wet Bounce and Wobble Landing - Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) 2023

A particularly heavy and sustained rain squall brought a slightly early conclusion to the Spanish AV-8B Harrier display during Sunday afternoon of The Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) 2023 at RAF Fairford. The pilot, Capitán de Corbeta (CC) Guillermo ’Gonzo’ Gonzalez, elected to do a vertical carrier deck style landing for the dramatic effect of the water being blasted from the runway by the engine down draft, but perhaps wasn’t bargaining for the bounce and tip onto the starboard out rigger and extra stress on the undercarriage. This is a great example of the Harriers strength and adaptability in wet and harsh weather conditions. The McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II was a joint project between the US and UK to develop a new generation of Harrier. The UK initially left the project in 1975 only to re-join it after the aircrafts first flight in 1981. The key differences between the original Harrier and the Harrier II were a more powerful engine, a larger composite wing with ad