McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II (1978-1995) and AV-8B Harrier II Plus (1992- ): The eye-catching trademark of the AV-8B Harrier II - its ability to takeoff and land vertically - makes it one of the world’s most recognizable aircraft. In 1969 McDonnell Douglas teamed up with British Aerospace and Rolls -Royce to develop an advanced-technology upgrade of the original Harrier “jump jet.” The AV-8B’s first flight took place in St. Louis on November 9, 1978. The U.S. Marine Corps, Britain’s Royal Air Force and the navies of Spain and Italy fly the aircraft. Designed to provide fast and effective close air support to ground forces, the AV-8B can operate from field clearings, roads, bomb-damaged runways, and small ships. A two-seat trainer version, the TAV-8B, first flew in 1986. The night attack version of the AV-8B, with a forward-looking-infrared sensor mounted above its nose, made its first flight in 1987. A total of 377 AV-8Bs were built in St. Louis and delivered between 1978 and 1995. The newest version of the Harrier is the AV-8B II Plus, which made its first flight on September 22, 1992. Equipped with the same radar used on the F/A-18C Hornet, the Harrier II Plus can perform air-to-air, anti-ship and close-air-support missions around the clock and in bad weather. A Boeing, British Aerospace and Rolls-Royce team produces the plane, which was developed through a three-nation agreement between the U.S., Spain and Italy. Through a remanufacturing program, earlier versions of the AV-8B are converted into the Harrier II Plus at a much lower cost than an all-new aircraft. The U.S. Marine Corps received its first Harrier II Plus in 1993 and its first remanufactured aircraft in 1996. Final assembly of the Harrier II Plus is done at the Boeing plant in St. Louis. To date, 51 new and 68 remanufactured AV-8B Harrier II Plus aircraft have been delivered.