Marines' Harrier aircraft back in action
after being grounded for 18 months
By David Allen, Okinawa
bureau chief
Courtesy of U.S. Marine Corps /
Stars and Stripes
Six AV-8B Harriers have rejoined the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit after an 18-month
hiatus. The attack fighter jets and 138 Marines of Marine Attack Air Squadron 311are part
of MEU's aviation combat element. |
CAMP HANSEN — Six AV-8B Harriers have rejoined the 31st Marine
Expeditionary Unit after an 18-month hiatus.
The attack fighter jets, able to land and take off vertically, along
with 138 Marines of Marine Attack Air Squadron 311, joined the MEU as part of its aviation
combat element, according to Marine officials.
The Harriers are deployed to Iwakuni Marine Corps Air Station, Japan,
said Capt. Cliff W. Gilmore, Marine Corps Public Affairs.
Most Marine Harriers were grounded — and pulled from the MEU
— following a series of engine problems, including the death of two aviators in a
crash last February at Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station in North Carolina.
Harriers also were grounded in 1999 and 2000 after major crashes.
VMA-311 is based at the Marine Corps air station in Yuma, Ariz., and
will be deployed with the 31st MEU for six months. Lt. Col. Stephen D. Hawkins, commanding
officer, said the Harriers will give more depth to the MEU’s area of operations
because of the aircraft’s range.
Without the Harriers, the MEU relied heavily on the limited range of
its AH-1W Super Cobra helicopters attached to Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 265.
Hawkins said the Harriers significantly bolster the MEU’s
ability to employ airborne firepower.
“We load up as heavy as we can, get in fast and furious, cause
mass confusion and destroy the enemy’s will to fight,” said Chief Warrant
Officer James C. Rose, ordnance officer for VMA-311.
The Harriers are armed with a variety of weapons, including
laser-guided munitions, and a 25mm gun capable of firing 6,000 rounds per minute.
They can carry general purpose and cluster bombs as well as 500-pound
and 1,000-pound high explosive bombs.
VMA-311 was named the Marine Corps’ Attack Squadron of the Year
for 2001.
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