Hickory Aviation Museum (HAM) is awarded McDonnell Douglas Av-8b Harrier II Plus BuNo 164560 ***Harrier Arrives Tomorrow Monday, July 15th at 3pm!***

HICKORY, NC (June 28, 2024) ⇒ HAM is happy to officially announce that the museum has been chosen to receive McDonnell Douglas AV-8B+ Harrier II Plus BuNo 164560! The aircraft will be flown into Hickory Regional Airport on Monday, July 15, dependent on a flyable aircraft and weather. The jet is based at MCAS Cherry Point, NC and HAM wishes to thank the USMC for their assistance and National Naval Aviation Museum for entrusting HAM with this aircraft and bringing this exciting jet to Hickory. The Harriers flown by the USMC have been an integral piece of North Carolina military aviation history for several decades and is a natural choice to be displayed in the new museum hangar, currently under construction.

164560 was accepted by the USMC in 1994. The aircraft saw extensive service with several USMC attack squadrons and was forward deployed to the Middle East for many years of its service.

The aircraft is scheduled to land at around 3pm. It will be in company with a two-seat Harrier, and they will do a fly by for photo opportunities, and then land. On the ground, they will taxi to the ramp adjacent to museum aircraft, made safe and secure, and then be available for 90 minutes for photos. Afterwards, the aircraft will be moved across the field as the USMC maintenance crew will need to begin the demilitarization of our jet. The other jet will depart HKY on July 16, time is TBD and will be announced at a later date. The public is welcome to attend, and should follow the HAM Facebook page for any schedule updates.

Hickory Aviation Museum Website