‘Jump jet’ gets drafted for civilian flying duty
The Rolls-Royce Pegasus-powered roar that rent the air at St.

The Rolls-Royce Pegasus-powered roar that rent the air at St. Mary’s County Regional Airport in Leonardtown, Md., last November heralded a most unusual first flight, that of the only civilian British Aerospace (Hawker Siddeley) Harrier in the world. At the controls was Art Nalls, a former Marine and Harrier test pilot who fell in love with the Harrier the first time he flew one.

For Nalls, who has more than 1,400 hours in Harriers, flying his Harrier for the first time was like coming home. “It was like putting on an old pair of shoes,” he said. “Much easier than I thought.”