The Air Force Really Wants to Kill the A-10 Warthog

[rangerrebew]

The Air Force Really Wants to Kill the A-10 Warthog

But Congress keeps saying no.
By Kyle Mizokami   
Dec 8, 2020
 
    The Air Force told Congress it wanted to retire 113 aircraft from its worldwide inventory.
    The 138 aircraft included A-10 Thunderbolt II ground attack aircraft, bombers, spy drones, and tankers.
    Congress mostly said no, and refused to retire any A-10s at all.

Congress has dashed the U.S. Air Force’s plans to retire nearly 140 aircraft, forcing the service to keep most of the planes in service. The 2021 defense budget will require the Air Force to keep all of the A-10 Thunderbolt II "Warthogs", B-1B Lancers, and many other types of planes the service had asked to shed.

https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/aviation/a34907462/air-force-wants-to-retire-a-10-thunderbolt-warthog-congress-opposition/

[ironhorsedriver]

Turn them over to the Marines! Then you'll see what close air support is all about.

[Smokin Joe]

The Chinese don't want to face them. Imagine a few of these on the south side of the Yalu during the Korean War...

[Wingnut]

The A-10 is an ugly but extremely effective airplane but it does not look impressive in a fly-by. It not a sexy fighter nor a big sleek, powerful long range bomber. It has one purpose, close air support, which the Air Force brass has despised for decades.

Some opponents of the Hog say that for CAS the F-16s, F-18s, B-1s, etc. can perform CAS almost as well as the A-10 because CAS is about the mission not the aircraft and those aircraft have a much higher survivability record.

But for me the A-10 has something those fancy flying bricks will never have, the pucker factor.    Enemy troops shit their pants and run when they hear the BRRRRRPPPPP.   

[Smokin Joe]

The A-10 is an ugly but extremely effective airplane but it does not look impressive in a fly-by. It not a sexy fighter nor a big sleek, powerful long range bomber. It has one purpose, close air support, which the Air Force brass has despised for decades.

Some opponents of the Hog say that for CAS the F-16s, F-18s, B-1s, etc. can perform CAS almost as well as the A-10 because CAS is about the mission not the aircraft and those aircraft have a much higher survivability record.

But for me the A-10 has something those fancy flying bricks will never have, the pucker factor.    Enemy troops shit their pants and run when they hear the BRRRRRPPPPP.   

When I was working a well in Nevada near Groom, I got to see a couple of A-10s flying out over the desert. The maneuvers they could perform close to the ground were impressive, and reminded me of a hawk hunting over a field. Even that was intimidating enough to make me thankful that I wasn't the prey.

For an enemy, facing the hardpoint mounted weaponry as well as the gun, it'd be cause for incontinence.

[sneakypete]

WHY?

[sneakypete]

@Wingnut
The A-10 is an ugly but extremely effective airplane but it does not look impressive in a fly-by.

Maybe not,but it is as impressive as HELL when it's doing a flo-OVER and "lights up". Trust me on that one.

But for me the A-10 has something those fancy flying bricks will never have, the pucker factor.    Enemy troops shit their pants and run when they hear the BRRRRRPPPPP.   

Amen,brother,amen!

Same with the old A-1 Skyraider that carried those big-ass napalm cannisters.

Can you say "Krispy Kritters on the perimeter"?

[Smokin Joe]

WHY?

(Because the ChiComs don't want us to have good close air support planes when they invade the West Coast.)

[PeteS in CA]

My employer in the late 70s made displays for military aircraft, including for the A-10. The USAF was wanting to kill the Thunderbolt II back then, too.

[sneakypete]

My employer in the late 70s made displays for military aircraft, including for the A-10. The USAF was wanting to kill the Thunderbolt II back then, too.

@PeteS in CA

Not sexy enough,not fast enough for the zoomies.

[rangerrebew]

I really hate to think it's because the ChiComs don't want to face them but the military is becoming more and more PC in the style of the democrat party.