(Image: eLaReF, reproduced with permission)
Delivered in 1998, the bright blue ZH809 was a late production Sea Harrier FA2 that only flew for eight years, withdrawn from service in 2006 having clocked up just 1073 flying hours. The aircraft, known as the Admiral’s Barge due to its special paint scheme applied for the 2004 display season, is seen above in open storage at RNAS Culdrose in Cornwall.
After being withdrawn from flying duties ZH809 served with the School of Flight Deck Operations at Culdrose, training Royal Navy handlers to shuffle aircraft safely around the flight decks of aircraft carriers. The SFDO still maintains a small fleet of taxiable Sea Harriers for ground training, but the Admiral’s Barge only served for two years before disposal to Everett Aero at the former RAF Bentwaters airfield.
(Image: I Wish I Was Flying (see website), cc-nd-4.0)
But unlike many other retired Sea Harriers, ZH809 was rehoused in an air museum at Karellas Koropiou, Greece. The aircraft is seen displaying the Sea Harrier’s capabilities on the 2004 air show circuit, two years before the type’s final retirement.
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