The war against Iraq represented an opportunity for British Harrier GR7 crews to use several new weapons in anger for the first time. It also highlighted shortcomings of current systems, which they want rectified in coming years.

The Royal Air Force Harriers served as somewhat of a "jack of all trades" during the campaign, with some aircraft configured to drop the newly fielded GPS-guided Enhanced Paveway II, others capable of firing AGM-65 TV and laser-guided Mavericks. The GR7s early this month also began using a low- and medium-altitude reconnaissance pod.

"The reconnaissance task is huge," said Group Capt. Mike Harwood, commander of the Harrier force. Even with the easing of hostilities, he argued there are "months of work" for reconnaissance systems. The recce device has basically been adapted from the Jaguar GR3 force and put to use on Harriers. The digital imagery is stored and exploited once the aircraft lands.

Although Harriers featured the Enhanced Paveway II, pilots found they didn't drop many of the GPS-guided bombs, although they were occasionally employed against buildings such as Ba'ath party headquarters in Basra, Harwood said. The use of the 1,000-lb. weapon would likely have increased if GR7s had seen more urban combat.

RAF Harriers were in the unusual position of not directly supporting U.K. ground forces. Instead, the aircraft fell under the umbrella of the Coalition Forces Air Component Command (CFACC), with primary responsibility for providing air support to the U.S. Army's V Corps. British ground troops, operating with the U.S. Marines, relied primarily on air support for Marine Corps assets. However, the demarcation wasn't solid, allowing GR7s to fly about 30% of their missions in support of U.S. Marine and British ground elements.