GR.9A ZG477 is at the RAF Museum Cosford and GR.9A ZD433 is at the Fleet air Arm Museum.
Of the 74 ex-RAF Harriers sold to the US, 58 are in storage
Davis-Monthan AFB Arizona and 16 are at Naval Air Depot Cherry Point
being prepare for USMC service, reports “Air Forces” magazine. Without
the Harriers and Ark Royal the RAF had to use Tornadoes in the Libyan
campaign. The MoD reported that (as a result) each fighter sortie
averaged eight hours and required five air-to-air refuellings. The
majority of the tankers was provided by the USA.
The UK’s first Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II, BK-1, made its first, 45 minute, flight on April 13th.
The aircraft has to complete company and government test flights before it is accepted by the UK. It will then be used for training and operational tests at Eglin AFB, Florida. BK-1 is the first international F-35 to fly.
The fact that this first UK F-35 was a B-model was very embarrassing
as the Government had switched from the STOVL F-35B to the F-35C
carrier variant. However, further embarrassment, except to the UK
Government, was avoided when the Ministry of Defence reversed that
decision because they at last realised that the cost of fitting the
Royal Navy's future aircraft carrier with catapult launch and arresting
gear was prohibitive and largely unknown, as many commentators had
pointed out.