It was decided to order and deploy short-take-off-and-vertical-landing (STOVL) AV-8S Matadors (AV-8A Harrier) when "Dédalo" was overhauled. Since the Harriers' downdraft on vertical landing would have damaged the wooden deck, protective metal sheathing was installed on the rear area of the flight deck. The first batch of six AV-8S single seat and two TAV-8S two seat aircraft were delivered to the "Armada Española" throughout 1976. A second batch of four AV-8S aircraft was delivered in 1980. Unlike some carriers used for Harrier operations, a ski-jump to assist STOVL takeoff was never installed on "Dédalo", limiting the maximum takeoff weight of the Harriers.