It seems that the Air Force isn't mothballing the A-10 aircraft.
At least not right away.
On paper, the Air Force plans to start mothballing the A-10 in 2018, with the last Warthogs sent to the boneyard by 2021. But last month Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James said that the retirement of the A-10 would likely have to be delayed further as the military continues to rely on the low-and-slow attack plane for close-air support (CAS) missions flown against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria. Even more telling, the Air Force Material Command (AFMC) is bringing the depot line for A-10 maintenance and repair back up to full capacity, according to Aviation Week.
Ain't that interesting. Evidently the low-and-slow aircraft still have a mission. That's great news for ground-pounders.
Air Force maintainers are also preparing to replace the wings of the A-10 fleet, tapping a $2 billion contract originally awarded to Boeing in 2007, which was intended at the time to keep the fleet flying until 2028. Some corrosion of the planes has been seen at the depots, but Pawlikowski says this is to be expected, especially on an aircraft that has been in service since 1977.
Great news for the old war-horse. If you've never stood underneath an A-10 while it made a run on targets downrange, you many never understand what a comfort it is to troops on the line.
Until you've been within spitting distance of an A-10 gun run, you don't really grasp the whole concept.
ReplyDeleteI spent some time as head intel geek for an A-10 squadron, and a lot of time on hot ranges. Watching them toss practice bombs at an old T-53 tank, and knock the aiming point (a three-foot long piece of six-inch pipe, painted white and welded onto the turret) off the turret, repeatedly, is just cool!!!