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Harrier Gr.1 Seat and Interior Color Questions.


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Hello all,

 

I have a couple questions regarding the Harrier Gr.1 as flown in the late summer of 1970 (AC serial #XV749). Is the seat black or is it the flat sea grey (FSG) cockpit interior color as called out in the Airfix plans? I am seeing both flat black and FSG seats in pictures and can't make heads or tails as to which is correct. Or are they both correct dependent upon the airframe/time frame due to some change in seat or something?

 

Also, Airfix calls out light aircraft grey for the cockpit rear bulkhead with the rest of the cockpit being FSG as mentioned above. However, I notice in pictures that it seems the overall cockpit color is uniform throughout (FSG in this case). True or false?

 

Lastly, what is/are good references (written and/or online) for the Harrier, specifically the Gr.1's and Gr.3's as well as the U.S. Marines AV-8B's?

 

As always, thank you for your time and efforts. Much appreciated.

 

Cheers!

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Hi Don, can't believe nobody has answered you yet.

 

The Martin-Baker Type 9 seat fitted in RAF GR1s has a semi-gloss black seat frame, with bright aluminium rivet detail.

The seat's back cushions are an olive drab shade, being a slightly greyer shade on the actual seat pack the pilot sits on.

Straps are light tan for the main harness, with light greyish-blue leg restraints.

Check when searching for images that you're looking at a Harrier seat, and not a Jaguar one as both used the Type 9.

 

The cockpit walls should all be Dark Admiralty Grey (very similar to Dark Sea Grey but maybe just a touch lighter).

Airfix may mean that the part of the bulkhead forming the nose gear wheel well interior should be light aircraft grey, but that's not correct.

The gear leg and wheel hub certainly are LAG, but the bay walls themselves should be white - although it gets very dirty and grimy.

 

My supposition is that first generation Harriers were all manufactured in the UK, and will be the same basic schemes whether US, UK, Thai or Spanish.

What happened after delivery and when is something you'll need to consult photos on to be sure.

 

For model purposes the IPMS's Harrier SIG is a great resource.

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Thank you very much for your assistance! Very much appreciated. I know very little about early Harriers right up to and including the Gr 3. So this all helps!

Cheers.

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