The Army is not allowed to have its own fixed wing close support aircraft.
Exactly why they should transfer the plane to the Army and Marine Corps. Let them get some pilots trained up. And let them come from the ranks of the Infantry.
The AF can say Goodbye to the aircraft. And the Grunts will know that the folks flying them used to be one of them.
The USAF doesn’t want the role, but it doesn’t want to give it the Army. Its weird that way.
The isn’t a new thing. The B-17 was originally designed as flying Coast Defense Artillery. The USN immediately moved to limit how far out to sea the USAAC could attack ships. It took Pearl Harbor to end that dispute.
I had a retired career British SAS vet tell me the A-10 was directly responsible for him being alive some 30 years later.
It is possible he loves the thing even more then I do.