Posted on 08/24/2019 11:25:36 AM PDT by Excuse_My_Bellicosity
The Air Force this week awarded Boeing a contract worth up to almost $1 billion to expand its effort to add new wings to A-10s, shortly after wrapping up a previous initiative that replaced wings on most of the fleet.
“The Air Force currently has a fleet of 281 A-10s and recently announced the completion of wing replacements for 173 A-10 aircraft, by Boeing, from an earlier contract award,” the service said in an Aug. 21 release. The Aug. 21 contract allows the Air Force to re-wing up to 109 aircraft, plus three spares, “depending on how many aircraft are needed for the future,” the service said.
Warthogs appear set to remain in service through the 2030s, after a recent debate about whether to retire the attack plane that ended with the Air Force keeping the platform in its inventory. Offering Boeing more funds for new A-10 wings on the remainder of the fleet can help keep the plane viable into the future.
Boeing receives about $240 million for an initial 27 wing sets upon award. The 11-year contract covers work in the US and South Korea, and is expected to run through Aug. 23, 2030.
The company expects to deliver the contract’s first wing sets to Hill AFB, Utah. It will also partner with Korean Aerospace Industries and other suppliers on the effort.
“Our established supply base, experience with the A-10 structures, and our in-depth knowledge of the US Air Force’s requirements will help us deliver high-quality wings to meet the customer’s critical need,” Pam Valdez, vice president of Air Force services for Boeing Global Services, said.
Correction: former-SecDef Gates.
Give the A-10 to the Marines, we are used to cast offs
and will put them to good use.
[[Warthogs appear set to remain in service through the 2030s,]]
Good- these are awesome, awesome, war machines-
They have be trying to kill the A-10 for at least 20 years.
“Give the A-10 to the Marines, we are used to cast offs
and will put them to good use.”
Don’t know how workable that is in the real world, but the Warthog has always seemed to have a Marine like toe to toe, brawler appeal.
“Give the A-10 to the Marines, we are used to cast offs
and will put them to good use.”
Outstanding video! Muzzie plinkin’ at it’s finest!
Just my $.02, but that looks like Apache footage to me.
Good news.
Still think the Army should get close air support fixed wings and fire control fixed wings.
Stupid to keep that arbitrary and old “fix wing must be air force” from the 60’s grade school bureaucratic fights.
The Marines would not have them since they insist all their aircraft be able to sort of take off nearly vertically on sort of rough strips with sort of a payload for near the front line deployment.
It was the Marines insistence on this stuff that got us the fouled up F-35 and all of its compromises.
The Harrier was an OK airplane if you did not expect to use it in the intended configuration very much.
It’s astounding to think that these planes will be 60 years old in 2030. B-52’s even older. And F-18’s and F-14’s aren’t exactly last year’s production either. The last A-10 was produced in 1984 and we figure the avg delivery date was maybe 1979 these are 40 year old airplanes now today.
If nothing else it has to be a tribute to their design quality.
From the no of rounds delivered in such a short time, I’d have to go with the GAU-8 on the A-10.
Like the man said when he asked for air support, send anything that starts with “A”.
Closer to 40+ years!!!
You are correct
The AF brass never really wanted the plane to begin with.
Ground support and attack was never popular with the brass.
Their first love was fighters and bombers a distant second.
Anything else was there to support the first two. If it didn’t it was taking up budget that was better spent on fighters.
I read articles where Air Force brass said it wasn’t “sexy” enough. They wanted a jet!!!
To bad it isn’t getting a new airfoil as well and additional config addons, aka drooped leading edges, VG’s etc, the pitching moment on stock airfoil it has is horrid, there are so many new high lift, low drag, low pitching moment airfoils ourthere if you look. Yes I know it means a new flight test program...
LOL stupid brass. A-10 is my fave and it is sexy as hell when I hear the cheers of our boots after seeing the result of a flyby hit.
Oohrah, A-10! From a Marine mom.
yeah, I know.
What, in hover mode?
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