US Tests a New Super A-10 Warthog Deadliest Weapons
The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II Warthog is a single-seat, twin turbofan engine, straight
wing jet aircraft developed by Fairchild-Republic for the United States Air Force. It is commonly
referred to by the nicknames "Warthog" or "Hog" although the A-10's official name comes from
the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, a World War II fighter-bomber effective at attacking ground
targets. The A-10 was designed for close air support of friendly ground troops, attacking
armored vehicles and tanks, and providing quick-action support against enemy ground forces.
The aircraft was used extensively during Operation Desert Storm,
in support of Nato operations in response to the Kosovo crisis,
in Operation Enduring Freedom. The A-10 is a high-survivability
and versatile aircraft, popular with pilots for the ‘get home’ effectiveness.
The A-10 has one factor that guarantees it can never truly be replaced with its gun.
These days, pretty much any warplane can drop guided munitions with pinpoint accuracy,
but what makes the A-10 so special is one of the only weapons used by the US
Air Force that isn’t precision-guided: the 30 mm GAU-8/A Avenger gun with 1,150 incendiary rounds.
The Air Force A-10 replacement strategy could involve building a new plane,
adjusting an existing aircraft or merely upgrading the A-10 itself.
Coupled with the Air Forces’ subsequent decision to delay the aircraft’s planned retirement – has
led the service to begin the process of developing a new, longer-term A-10 type platform.
The A-10 was designed around the General Electric GAU-8/A Avenger 30mm cannon and its seven barrels,
which are able to dish out devastating punishment to armor.
Over the years, the Warthog's 11 hardpoints have evolved from
carrying dumb iron bombs and rockets to hauling the latest guided ordnance.
Senior service officials are now exploring draft requirements concepts and evaluating
the kind of avionics, engineering, weapons, armor and technical redundancy the aircraft would need,
Air Force officials told Scout Warrior.
“We are developing that draft requirements document. We are staffing it around the Air
Force now. When it's ready, then we will compare that to what we have available,
compare it to keeping the A-10, compare it to what it would take to replace it with another airplane,
and we will work through that process,” Lt Gen James Holmes,
Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Plans and Requirements, told reporters several months ago.
The Air Force is beginning to work on how fast,
lethal, durable and capable a new A-10 like aircraft would need to be in order to provide
U.S. military ground troops with effective close-air support for decades to come.
A new large-area cockpit display and additional weapons are all in the grand plans
to get the A-10 ready for higher-end missions. Many of the core technical attributes and combat
advantages of the A-10 will be preserved and expanded upon with the new effort, officials said.
A-10 pilots can employ 500-pound-class GBU-38 or 54 or 2,000-pound class GBU-31
Joint Direct Attack Munitions and the aircraft will inform
the pilot if they can all hit their intended targets on a single run.
This kind of firepower, coupled with its 30mm cannon,
titantium armor plates and built-in redundancy for close-air-support, makes the A-10 a
valuable platform for potential larger-scale mechanized, force-on-force type warfare as well.
The A-10 has a unique and valuable niche role to perform in the widest possible range of combat
scenarios to include counterinsurgency, supporting troops on the ground in close
proximity and bringing firepower, protection and infantry support to a large-scale war.