VMA-542 Marine Harrier Pilots Tune Up Their Inclement Weather Landing Skills

While the AV-8B Harriers may be used to deploy precision guided munitions, the Marines in the driver's seat are working on their Harrier precise guiding abilities. Pilots of Marine Attack Squadron 542 recently set some time aside to sharpen their rolling vertical landing (RLV) skills. The RVL is used if...

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While the AV-8B Harriers may be used to deploy precision guided munitions, the Marines in the driver's seat are working on their Harrier precise guiding abilities. Pilots of Marine Attack Squadron 542 recently set some time aside to sharpen their rolling vertical landing (RLV) skills.

The RVL is used if there are high crosswinds, anything above 20 knots, on the flight line.

"The purpose of the rolling vertical landing is for landing at expeditionary sites or in case of inclement weather," said Marine Lt. Col. John Sisson, the squadron's commanding officer.

For a normal landing, the pilot approaches and lands at 90 knots. The rolling vertical landing is unconventional and the landing speed is 70 knots. The RVL uses the same technique as a normal landing, but it requires a slower speed on lineup and landing.

The landing also requires the use of a landing site supervisor. The LSS stands near the landing zone and talks the pilot down.

"On an RVL, you're coming in steeper and you're looking for a certain spot to make a precise landing," said Marine Capt. Brett Leffler, a VMA-542 pilot and training officer. "The LSS stands on the center line so they can tell us if our lineup is good. They have seen it before so they can tell us if we're too steep, shallow or slow."

The LSS helps judge the lineup on the road or taxiway and makes correction calls. The LSS uses two radios. One is used to communicate with the aircraft control tower and the other can be used to talk directly to the pilot to give them a correction.

"The LSS is always a pilot with more experience," said Sisson. "They have to know what an aircraft should look like from the ground and what the aircraft's requirements are while coming in for a landing."

This type of landing requires a greater pilot workload because it requires the aviators to keep a much tighter flight pattern while landing.

"The first thing you think about for an RVL is that it's a smaller taxiway than you're used to," said Marine Capt. Scott Shively, another VMA-542 pilot. "The lineup while landing becomes more critical to safely get the jet down. It's also more challenging because you have to follow a precise glide slope, which is a steeper angle."