The US Air Force is finally getting rid of its A-10s, and its focus may be straying from the Warthog's unique mission
Story by insider@insider.com (Constantine Atlamazoglou) • 1h ago
After years of debate, Congress has approved a US Air Force plan to begin retiring A-10 Thunderbolts.
The A-10 is the only US military aircraft purpose-built to provide close air support to ground forces.
But training documents raise questions about the Air Force's focus on that mission going forward.
After repeatedly blocking the US Air Force's attempts to retire the A-10 Thunderbolt II, Congress late last year approved a plan to decommission 21 of the venerable ground-attack aircraft, which is the only US military aircraft purpose-built for close air support.
Those retirements would shrink the Air Force's A-10 fleet to 260 aircraft, and Air Force leaders plan to continue decommissioning A-10s in the years ahead.
Air Force officials have said they want to replace the A-10, affectionately known as the Warthog, with the F-35 as the service's primary close-air-support aircraft.
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