The Inside Story On How The U.K. Airforce Eliminated Their Entire Harrier Fleet In Two Months

Warzone/The Drive: The Inside Story Of How The UK Culled Its Entire Harrier Jet Force In Just Two Months

Retired RAF Harrier chief recalls how painful decision-making resulted in the abrupt end of an icon before its time.

Retired Air-Vice Marshal Gary Waterfall was one of the Royal Air Force’s most senior and experienced Harrier pilots when he was selected to become the figurehead of the United Kingdom’s Joint Force Harrier from September 2009. It was the start of a historic and deeply emotional rollercoaster journey that ultimately culminated in him having to personally oversee a highly controversial decision to completely shut down British Harrier operations over a short, two month period.

“I took charge of Joint Force Harrier as it came out of five years dedicated to operations in Afghanistan, with the view of getting it reconstituted, regenerated, and ready for small focused interventions from land or sea,” Waterfall told the War Zone.

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WNU Editor: A depressing but revealing story on how the UK Defense Ministry and their political masters operate.