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The A-10 Warthog Is Sticking Around for at Least Another Decade

23 points by smacktoward 7y ago

potta_coffee 7y ago
Former Marine here...the A10 is AWESOME. Nothing matches it. It has a huge amount of firepower, can take a beating and can stay in the area for a relatively long period of time. Grunts have a fondness for these planes.
- Fjolsvith 7y ago
  As a Boy Scout, my troop visited the Air Force Academy in 1984 and the public relations officer showed us a film of the A10 taking out armored vehicles. What was memorable to me was him saying that when they leaked the film to Russia, tank troops didn't want to be in tanks anymore.
- Recurecur 7y ago
  The A-10 is great as long as the opponent isn't a near-tier adversary. If there are real air defenses around, the A-10 will soon be a smoking hole in the ground. Even during the 70's when it was brand new, their expected lifetime in Europe was only a few days if conflict started. Shoulder fired MANPADs and AAA are too much of a threat for a low, slow, non-stealthy beast like the A-10. And no, the armor won't help.
  - potta_coffee 7y ago
    Sure but that's the same story with helos as well. The A-10 definitely has a valid role in conflicts like Iraq / Afghanistan.
    - Recurecur 7y ago
      > Sure but that's the same story with helos as well. That's not the case, as helicopters can use terrain to hide in ways an A-10 simply can't. The Longbow Apaches only need to expose the top of their rotor mast above a hill or treeline to target the enemy. Other Apaches can then fire missiles indirectly (without seeing the target) and kill the enemy forces. Flying "nap of the Earth" has its advantages...
duxup 7y ago
Close air support doesn't seem like the role that, at least at this point, needs the next gen latest and greatest thing. The A-10 seems to fill its role just fine.
- scanny 7y ago
  Ask yourself who the aircraft has been deployed against. Then ask yourself what would happen if it were deployed against someone comparable to the United States. During the 1980's within "two weeks [of full hostilities between the US and the USSR] the entire A-10 force at the time — around 700 jets — would have been destroyed and the pilots killed, injured, captured"[1]. So now, almost 40 years on, how do you think the A-10 will stand? https://medium.com/war-is-boring/an-a-10-pilot-could-hope-to-last-two-weeks-against-the-soviets-1ebff9bfa4df https://medium.com/war-is-boring/an-a-10-pilot-could-hope-to...
  - duxup 7y ago
    That sounds like a good way to end up with a plane for use in wars you aren't fighting at the expense of those they are fighting.
    - scanny 7y ago
      It seems to me that armed drones have already taken on the new long-loitering fire support platform. Although there are programs looking into a cost efficient replacement that still fulfills the `guy-in-an-armed-flying-metal-box replacement` [1] https://www.indrastra.com/2019/05/USAF-OA-X-Program-6-Light-Attack-Aircraft-005-05-2019-0063.html https://www.indrastra.com/2019/05/USAF-OA-X-Program-6-Light-...
_iyig 7y ago
Have any UAVs been developed for close air support? Seems like one of the riskier tasks for human pilots. I wonder if command latency is more of an issue for low-and-slow gun runs? EDIT: Looks like DARPA is working on it, sort of: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persistent_Close_Air_Support https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persistent_Close_Air_Support

23 points by smacktoward 7y ago

Former Marine here...the A10 is AWESOME. Nothing matches it. It has a huge amount of firepower, can take a beating and can stay in the area for a relatively long period of time. Grunts have a fondness for these planes.

Fjolsvith 7y ago
As a Boy Scout, my troop visited the Air Force Academy in 1984 and the public relations officer showed us a film of the A10 taking out armored vehicles. What was memorable to me was him saying that when they leaked the film to Russia, tank troops didn't want to be in tanks anymore.
Recurecur 7y ago
The A-10 is great as long as the opponent isn't a near-tier adversary. If there are real air defenses around, the A-10 will soon be a smoking hole in the ground. Even during the 70's when it was brand new, their expected lifetime in Europe was only a few days if conflict started. Shoulder fired MANPADs and AAA are too much of a threat for a low, slow, non-stealthy beast like the A-10. And no, the armor won't help.
- potta_coffee 7y ago
  Sure but that's the same story with helos as well. The A-10 definitely has a valid role in conflicts like Iraq / Afghanistan.
  - Recurecur 7y ago
    > Sure but that's the same story with helos as well. That's not the case, as helicopters can use terrain to hide in ways an A-10 simply can't. The Longbow Apaches only need to expose the top of their rotor mast above a hill or treeline to target the enemy. Other Apaches can then fire missiles indirectly (without seeing the target) and kill the enemy forces. Flying "nap of the Earth" has its advantages...

duxup 7y ago

Close air support doesn't seem like the role that, at least at this point, needs the next gen latest and greatest thing. The A-10 seems to fill its role just fine.

scanny 7y ago
Ask yourself who the aircraft has been deployed against. Then ask yourself what would happen if it were deployed against someone comparable to the United States. During the 1980's within "two weeks [of full hostilities between the US and the USSR] the entire A-10 force at the time — around 700 jets — would have been destroyed and the pilots killed, injured, captured"[1]. So now, almost 40 years on, how do you think the A-10 will stand? https://medium.com/war-is-boring/an-a-10-pilot-could-hope-to-last-two-weeks-against-the-soviets-1ebff9bfa4df https://medium.com/war-is-boring/an-a-10-pilot-could-hope-to...
- duxup 7y ago
  That sounds like a good way to end up with a plane for use in wars you aren't fighting at the expense of those they are fighting.
  - scanny 7y ago
    It seems to me that armed drones have already taken on the new long-loitering fire support platform. Although there are programs looking into a cost efficient replacement that still fulfills the `guy-in-an-armed-flying-metal-box replacement` [1] https://www.indrastra.com/2019/05/USAF-OA-X-Program-6-Light-Attack-Aircraft-005-05-2019-0063.html https://www.indrastra.com/2019/05/USAF-OA-X-Program-6-Light-...

_iyig 7y ago

Have any UAVs been developed for close air support? Seems like one of the riskier tasks for human pilots. I wonder if command latency is more of an issue for low-and-slow gun runs? EDIT: Looks like DARPA is working on it, sort of: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persistent_Close_Air_Support https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persistent_Close_Air_Support