AV-SB/GR Mk 5 Airframe Composite Applications

This paper describes the composite applications on the AV-8B/GR Mk 5 Harrier II airfame. Twenty-five per cent of the airframe weight is composite materials resulting in a weight saving of 525 lb per aircraft. Topics covered in this paper include the composite wing, forward fuselage and horizontal tail designs, the development test programmes, design philosophy, interpretation and evaluation of test results, impact damage, ballistic damage, lightning, repairs, and manufacturing defects.