Boy, 7, 'bought' Harrier jump jet

An over enthusiastic seven-year-old boy almost bought himself a real Harrier jump jet on eBay - for £69,999.

The youngster, from London, hit the 'buy it now' button on the auction website to purchase the restored fighter jet.

His father had to quickly apologise to the sellers and explain that his son was not able to buy the aircraft out of his pocket money.

"His dad rang up and profusely apologised to us, so it's still for sale. We've put it on as an auction now so that won't happen again," said a spokeswoman for Jet Art Aviation, of Bradford, which is selling the Harrier.

The British-built jet was integral to the nation's arsenal in the Falklands War, but the Government decommissioned the elite fighting machines in 1997.

Chris Wilson, 33, the former RAF mechanic who runs Jet Art Aviation, said the piece of British military history will probably be lost to the country.

"It will probably go out of the country to a company. There are a couple of museums in the UK that would love to have it, but the museums in this country are broke," he said.

The Harrier Jump Jet T-Bird Aircraft XW269 currently on sale was last flown in 1997. It has been decommissioned and its engine removed.

Mr Wilson said the jet could be made air-worthy again - but at a significant cost.

"It would cost millions of pounds, and for legal reasons, we can't sell it as a working jet," he said, adding that it was one of only six of its kind to remain in the world.