Hawker Siddeley Harrier to the pilot by a head-up display and a moving map display. The Harrier's VTOL abilities allowed it to be deployed from very small prepared clearings or helipads as well as normal airfields. It was believed that, in a high-intensity conflict, air bases would be vulnerable and likely to be quickly knocked out. The capability to scatter Harrier squadrons to dozens of small "alert pads" on the front lines was highly prized by military strategists and the USMC procured the aircraft because of this ability. Hawker Siddeley noted that STOL operation provided additional benefits over VTOL operation, saving fuel and
Aircraft in fiction for the Decepticon Jetblade. A prototype Harrier was used in the TV series "The Saint" (1962–1969) in Season 5, Episode 13 "Flight Plan" (aired June 25, 1967). In the show Simon Templar has to retrieve a prototype aircraft called the "Osprey" that was stolen by its test pilot and flown to a middle eastern country. The "Osprey" is portrayed by a Hawker Siddeley P.1127 and a Hawker Siddeley Kestrel, both early versions of the Harrier. A Royal Air Force Harrier was used by MI6 in the 1987 James Bond film "The Living Daylights" to smuggle KGB defector Georgi Koskov out