Posted on 10/06/2021 11:04:27 AM PDT by Onthebrink
Will no one rid us of this troublesome A-10 ‘Warthog’? The United States Air Force (USAF) has spent almost two-thirds of its existence as an independent service trying to get rid of the A-10, one of its most well-known aircraft. But has the Air Force finally given up? It is odd to think that a fifty-year-old aircraft might have more job security now than at any time in its long history, but it does seem that the Warthog now has a relatively secure space in the USAF fleet.
(Excerpt) Read more at 19fortyfive.com ...
If you heard it, you know it. 😏
Not just fighters, but single seat fighters. The USAF is still smarting because the top Vietnam War (6 kills) air ace was a WSO. Capt Charles DeBellevue
If the sound of the plane dosen’t work, the BRRRRTTT should stop them instantly.
Proud to say that I helped build the originals, working in the Farmingdale plant on Long Island, (once Republic Aviation). The production run would have been longer bit, as I got it through the grapevine, the Air Force was plumb fed up with the corruption and the unions in that plant. They weren’t wrong; I was there.
The wings I worked on were always overweight, because the machine tools they were milling the lower skins on were so bad. The new wings that Boeing built for them just have to be a whole lot better.
Because it does its job so well.
Air Force zoomers hate the job of direct Air Support. It’s time to let each force provide air support for their own. A marine pilot will go all out in providing support for fellow marines, so will an army pilot for their soldiers. Presumably the navy already has plenty of zoomer aircraft.
The A-10 is a GUN with an aircraft built around it.
My nephew, as he and his unit were heading home, stopped in Germany and ran into some pilots that were in the bar on base. Turns out they were the some of the A10 pilots that saved some bacon while he and his boys were deployed.
I worked with some former AF guys on a military sales contract. For the ones that worked on the A10s at some point in their careers, that was the only plane that mattered in the US Air Force.
Grunts in the Sky ............... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpCvySLGuOA&t=519s
It,s impressive, finished some target rehab and demo work on the bombing range at FT Chaffee back in the day, range control let us hang out and watch the show. The 188th FW (Warthogs) came thru a few hours later and 3 days of work was gone in a few seconds.
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.
I have one other A10 story: Not too long after Desert Storm I was talking with a retired A-10 pilot. The comment I remember is: “Chad, it was like making war on your dog”. Without an form of air defense, the Iraqi armor was just so many practice targets. He said that a lot of the vehicles they shot up were unmanned. The crews had simply fled into the desert.
You are right. High level bombing had little success against maneuvering ships in WWII. But nobody knew that then, including the USN.
Warthog? In high school we used to call our ugliest teacher “Mr Warthog” because he looked like this:
https://africageographic.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/warthog-Bernard-DUPONT.jpg
From what I’ve read, the Navy turned out to be right. B-17 turned out to pretty poor in the role it was designed for—attacking/sinking ships.
The "Flying Coastal Defense" meme was just a story cooked up to get funding for a four-engine bomber. But yeah, the Navy hated the idea. They tried to get it killed on the theory that an aircraft could never locate a battleship at sea. Despite the Navy's having cheated in a number of ways, Curt LeMay, flying as a navigator, proved them wrong. Oops!
.......OMG, that is sooooooo SEX-ist.....!!!!
If one shows up at the Army Surplus Store, I’ll be strongly tempted.
Interesting way to describe a full on temper tantrum. The Army screams like a banshee every time the topic of eliminating the Warthog comes up.
Just to clarify, every A-10 driver I've spoken with just love that big ol' hawg and CAS. It's the fighter and bomber mafias which hates CAS and, by extension, the A-10.
AND ... this is why our grunts love it while the opponents FEAR IT;
Can you say 'swiss cheese'?
That was a waste of resources. We easily could have landed counterintel troops to take over those Iraqi tanks. Imagine what fun we could have with those things in our back pocket.
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