Editing Hawker Siddeley Harrier (section)

===Production===
[[File:AV-8C VMA-513 takes off from LPD in 1982.JPEG|thumb|upright=1.25|AV-8C Harrier taking off from an [[amphibious transport dock]] ship|alt= A Harrier on the deck of a small aircraft carrier, with its nose wheel off the deck]]
Following the collapse of the P.1154's development the RAF began considering a simple upgrade of the existing subsonic Kestrel and issued Requirement ASR 384 for a V/STOL ground attack jet.<ref name= Jefford_13/> Hawker Siddeley received an order for six pre-production aircraft in 1965, designated ''P.1127 (RAF)'', of which the first made its maiden flight on 31 August 1966.<ref name="mason harrier p78">Mason 1986, p.&nbsp;78.</ref> An order for 60 production aircraft, designated as Harrier GR.1, was received in early 1967.<ref name="Mason harrier p81">Mason 1986, p.&nbsp;81.</ref><ref>[http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1966/1966%20-%201559.html "VTOL Aircraft 1966".] ''Flight International'', 26 May 1966. p.&nbsp;884. Retrieved 31 July 2011.</ref> The aircraft was named after the [[Harrier (bird)|Harrier]], a bird of prey.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Yarrish |first1=Gerry |title=The Harrier Jump Jet |url=https://www.flightjournal.com/harrier-jump-jet/ |website=Flight Journal |publisher=Air Age Media |access-date=13 June 2019}}</ref>

The Harrier GR.1 made its first flight on 28 December 1967, and it officially entered service with the RAF on 1 April 1969.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jackson |first1=Robert |title=Britain's Greatest Aircraft |date=2007 |publisher=Pen and Sword |isbn=9781473812673 |page=213}}</ref> The aircraft was built in two factories—one in [[Kingston upon Thames]], southwest London, and the other at [[Dunsfold Aerodrome]], Surrey—and underwent initial testing at Dunsfold.<ref name= Nordeen_66>Nordeen 2006, p.&nbsp;66.</ref> The [[Flight deck#Ski-jump ramp|ski-jump]] technique for launching Harriers from Royal Navy aircraft carriers was extensively trialled at [[RNAS Yeovilton (HMS Heron)|RNAS Yeovilton]] from 1977. Following these tests ski-jumps were added to the flight decks of all RN carriers from 1979 onwards, in preparation for the new variant for the navy, the Sea Harrier.<ref>Vann 1990, p.&nbsp;23.</ref><ref>Evans 1998, p.&nbsp;60.</ref>

In the late 1960s the British and American governments held talks on producing Harriers in the United States. Hawker Siddeley and McDonnell Douglas formed a partnership in 1969 in preparation for American production,<ref name= Nordeen_28>Nordeen 2006, p.&nbsp;28.</ref> but Congressman [[Mendel Rivers]] and the [[House Appropriations Committee]] held that it would be cheaper to produce the AV-8A on the pre-existing production lines in the United Kingdom—hence all AV-8A Harriers were purchased from Hawker Siddeley.<ref name= Nordeen_28/> Improved Harrier versions with better sensors and more powerful engines were developed in later years.<ref name="Evans p31,3"/><ref name="WAPJ6 p54"/><ref name= Nordeen_35/> The USMC received 102 AV-8A and 8 TAV-8A Harriers between 1971 and 1976.<ref name= Nordeen_31>Nordeen 2006, p.&nbsp;31.</ref>
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