Watch an AV-8B Harrier Being Cared for by Army of Skilled Marines

The Harrier is one of those weird machines that have come out of talented defense contractor hands to care for the needs of the military. It was introduced in 1985, and production of the thing continued into 2003. During that time, over 330 of them had been built, and deployed for military operations.

The plane is a V/STOL, meaning a vertical/short takeoff and landing machine. An airplane that can hover in place, just like a helicopter, if you like. In the AV-8B configuration, it is the result of work conducted by McDonnell Douglas (now part of Boeing), British Aerospace and Rolls-Royce, and it was derived from the AV-8A, it too an evolution of the 1950s British Hawker-Siddley Harrier.

Its unique abilities meant it was the first U.S. Marines aircraft to arrive on scene in the Persian Golf for Operation Desert Storm in 1991, and it was during that conflict that the ground attack contraption enjoyed its glory days. Meant to engage targets on the ground, the Harrier flew 3,380 combat sorties, or a total of 4,112 combat hours, pounding the desert floor with the power of 6 million pounds of ordnance (3,000 tons).

Despite its age, the aircraft is still in service, and it will continue to fly the U.S. Marines at least until the end of the decade. For that to happen though, maintenance has to be carefully performed, and this is exactly what we’re seeing in the video below, published not long ago by Military in Action.

It shows the soldiers of the Marine Attack Training Squadron tending to their planes as they get them ready for action.