Hawker Siddeley Harrier AV-8S Matador

The Spanish acquisition was complicated by political friction between the British and Spanish governments of the era: although the Harriers were built in the United Kingdom, they were sold to Spain with the United States acting as intermediary. Hence the American export designation AV-8S, derived from the AV-8A, alongside the Spanish VA.1 Matador.

In November 1972 British test pilot John Farley demonstrated that the wooden deck of the carrier Dédalo could withstand the temperature of the Harrier's exhaust gases, settling the main technical doubt about operating the type from that ship.

From 1976 the Spanish Navy operated the AV-8S Matador from Dédalo with 008 Escuadrilla, providing the fleet with both air defence and strike capability. Spain later bought five more Harriers directly from the British government, mainly to make good losses. Demonstrating that small carriers could sustain fixed-wing aviation drew the attention of other navies and prefigured the 'Harrier carrier' model.

When the Matadors were replaced by Harrier IIs, Spain sold seven single-seaters and two two-seaters to Thailand in 1998. The Royal Thai Navy's AV-8S aircraft formed part of the air wing of the new light carrier HTMS Chakri Naruebet. From the outset there were severe logistical problems caused by a shortage of funds for spares and equipment, leaving only a few aircraft serviceable at a time: in 1999, two years after delivery, just one airframe was airworthy. Around 2003 Thailand considered acquiring former Royal Navy Sea Harriers, better equipped for air defence, but no purchase followed. The last Thai first-generation Harriers were retired in 2006.