A-1 Skyraider: How the A-10 Warthog Was Born?

[Elderberry]

1945 by Harrison Kass 7/17/2022

The A-10 Warthog is truly a legend and, despite its advanced age, is considered one of the most potent ground attack planes on the planet today. And yet, the A-1 Skyraider had a very similar role decades before the A-10 ever flew and may have inspired the creation of the Warthog: Dating back to the 1970s and beginning in the 1950s, jet engines were standard in U.S. fighter/attack aircraft. Nearly without variation, new fighters like the F-109 Cougar, the F-102 Delta Dagger, and the F-104 Starfighter, were built around modern jet engines. Yet, in the early 1970s, with Richard Nixon in the White House, NASA astronauts routinely exploring the lunar surface, and Robert Redford emerging in Hollywood, one U.S. attack aircraft still relied upon a propeller for thrust – just like the Wright Flyer had in 1903. Lingering stubbornly, an anachronism that refused to die, the Douglas A-1 Skyraider was the U.S.’s last-ever prop-driven fighter/attack aircraft.

Propelling Through Time with a Classic Airframe

The A-1 first flew while Hitler still ruled Germany, in March 1945. The piston-engined prop plane entered service the following year, beginning a remarkable service life that would overlap with sophisticated aircraft like the SR-71 Blackbird and the F-14 Tomcat.

The A-1 was a relatively simple machine. Designed to satisfy U.S. Navy requirements for a carrier-based, single-seat, long-range dive/torpedo bomber, the A-1 was meant to replace World War II airframes including the Douglas SBD Dauntless, the Grumman TBF Avenger, and the Curtiss SB2C Helldiver.

More: https://www.19fortyfive.com/2022/07/a-1-skyraider-how-the-a-10-warthog-was-born/

[sneakypete]

1945 by Harrison Kass 7/17/2022

The A-10 Warthog is truly a legend and, despite its advanced age, is considered one of the most potent ground attack planes on the planet today. And yet, the A-1 Skyraider had a very similar role decades before the A-10 ever flew and may have inspired the creation of the Warthog: Dating back to the 1970s and beginning in the 1950s, jet engines were standard in U.S. fighter/attack aircraft. Nearly without variation, new fighters like the F-109 Cougar, the F-102 Delta Dagger, and the F-104 Starfighter, were built around modern jet engines. Yet, in the early 1970s, with Richard Nixon in the White House, NASA astronauts routinely exploring the lunar surface, and Robert Redford emerging in Hollywood, one U.S. attack aircraft still relied upon a propeller for thrust – just like the Wright Flyer had in 1903. Lingering stubbornly, an anachronism that refused to die, the Douglas A-1 Skyraider was the U.S.’s last-ever prop-driven fighter/attack aircraft.

Propelling Through Time with a Classic Airframe

The A-1 first flew while Hitler still ruled Germany, in March 1945. The piston-engined prop plane entered service the following year, beginning a remarkable service life that would overlap with sophisticated aircraft like the SR-71 Blackbird and the F-14 Tomcat.

The A-1 was a relatively simple machine. Designed to satisfy U.S. Navy requirements for a carrier-based, single-seat, long-range dive/torpedo bomber, the A-1 was meant to replace World War II airframes including the Douglas SBD Dauntless, the Grumman TBF Avenger, and the Curtiss SB2C Helldiver.

More: https://www.19fortyfive.com/2022/07/a-1-skyraider-how-the-a-10-warthog-was-born/

@Elderberry

Speaking as a grunt,I loved,loved,LOVED those things to pieces! Nothing else flying could carry that much ordinance,and put it down EXACTLY where you wanted it.

From what I understand,and I can't verify the truth of this,the USAF and USN pilots felt the same way,and there was never a shortage of pilots volunteering to fly those "Old,outdated aircraft".

I am not exaggerating even the tiniest bit when I tell you that I would not be alive today if it weren't for those old "outdated" airplanes and the young men that flew them. 

[mystery-ak]

 A-10 Warthog is my fav plane....I am an airforcebrat..raised on USAF bases around the world...seen all kinds of aircraft but the A-10 is my favorite....

[sneakypete]

A-10 Warthog is my fav plane....I am an airforcebrat..raised on USAF bases around the world...seen all kinds of aircraft but the A-10 is my favorite....

@mystery-ak

I gotta admit I am also kind of fond of them.

When the Skyraiders start showing up,the enemy starts to hear their mamas calling them back home,and start beating feet that way.

BTW,please take note that without the brave men that had to compete with other brave men just to get a chance to fly them are pretty special people,too. I have seen them do a roll after a gun run,and they were close enough to the ground you could see the pilot smiling. Takes serious stones to do that,as well as serious skills as a fighter/bomber pilot. Only the best of the best got to fly these things.

[ironhorsedriver]

Who didn't love the Spad!