Journal

The Harrier, declared

When the ten teams published their provisional airframe choices, ours was the only one nobody else had picked. More than one person asked us if we had made a mistake. The Albatros and the Hawk are cheaper to run. The Falcon is faster. The Skyhawk turns.

But the Harrier can do something none of them can. When a hit against you costs exactly as much as a hit for you, being able to make a pursuer fly past you is a serious advantage. We declared the Harrier in September. The choice becomes official at the pre-season inspection, and we are already looking for a third airframe.

A sun and a line

Most of the logo ideas we were sent had a jet in them. We did not want one. The mark is a red disc, the Hinomaru, with one black line rising through it. Some people see a flight path, others the front edge of a wing. The line tapers the way a Concorde wing does, thin at the back and thicker as it leaves the sun. There is no aircraft in it, and it still reads clearly when it is embroidered just twenty millimetres wide.

The lettering came last. It is an italic that leans the same way as the line, with "Jet Team" spaced out underneath so the two words match the width of the three letters above.

Two addresses

The team is from Tokyo, and the fin says so. For the first two seasons, though, the work happens at Le Bourget. We have a hangar, a studio with one long table, and an airfield that was the heart of French aviation long before jets existed. The Paris round on 7 July will be the only weekend of the year the crew sleeps at home. Suzuka on 13 October is the only one the founders will.

Why a jet that can stop

A few people have asked about the physics, so here it is. In a turning fight, the jet that can lose speed fastest without losing its aim controls the fight. A normal jet loses speed by turning harder, which costs height, speed or both. A Harrier just points its nozzles slightly forward for a second or two, and the jet chasing it ends up in front.

The unveiling, then Suzuka

We will introduce our pilots and gamers soon. The public first sees us fly on the 2028 pre-season tour, which ends at Laguna Seca in September. Then comes Doha on 24 February 2029, and Suzuka on 13 October, the race we have circled on the calendar.