Francis Gary Powers- CIA Lockheed U-2 pilot. Shot down over Soviet airspace, 1 May 1960...More info >>>>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Gary_Powers
Posted on 02/25/2014 1:56:03 PM PST by bkopto
TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) - The Defense Secretary announced today that he is recommending the elimination of the A-10, the mainstay aircraft at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, as part of a proposed military budget.
Chuck Hagel made the announcement today in at the Pentagon.
The Air Force has said it would save $3.5 billion over five years by cutting the entire fleet of 343 A-10s.
Hagel said he consulted with the military service chiefs on how to balance defense and budget requirements.
(Excerpt) Read more at tucsonnewsnow.com ...
When the military is gutted like after WW1 the military will go back to practicing with wooden guns and horses instead of tanks.
Oh, yes indeed.
That's because the left isn't incompetent, it is evil. Leftism is evil.
I’d think a lot of Army brass would want the whole inventory sent over to them ASAP! If they don’t, then this ol’ SP4 says they’re either islamocommies or they’re crazy. There’d be no third possibility.
The US Air Force U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft first flew in 1955 and was developed by Lockheed Martin at the famous Skunk Works site.
Sorry, I can tell the difference between many of the black jets...I’ve worked on 2 out of 3, the SR was the only bird I didn’t have the priviledge of turning a wrench on.
see post 39
Sheesh, it’s not like I’m an amateur at this...been working on aircraft since 1983....
You apparently didn’t know the history of the U2 very well......
I didn’t say anything about those first birds, read my post again...I was talking about the current birds and I don’t recall dragging history into it...but if it satisfies you, so be it.
I’m not going to argue semantics or look at squirrels.
It can loiter for a long time and take a lot of damage and it can destroy armor. It is basically a tank with wings.
Is it still armed with “the gun.” I remember lefites complaining about the uranium slugs.
“The U2 isn’t 50 years old, those birds were built in the mid 80’s and have about 80% of their airframe life left in them.”
“The U-2 spy plane was the brainchild of the Central Intelligence Agency, and it was a sophisticated technological marvel. Traveling at altitudes of up to 70,000 feet, the aircraft was equipped with state-of-the-art photography equipment that could, the CIA boasted, take high-resolution pictures of headlines in Russian newspapers as it flew overhead. Flights over the Soviet Union began in mid-1956. The CIA assured President Eisenhower that the Soviets did not possess anti-aircraft weapons sophisticated enough to shoot down the high-altitude planes.”
Is there anything preventing volunteers to maintain the state’s guard units?
BTW, don’t hear anything about this pi$$ant sized state of Delaware losing Dover AFB or the Air Guard in New Castle. Politics, you think?
If your ad hominem was meant to camoflauge your apparent and abject ignorance of the current state of the fleet, it fell flat...go find some other idiot who will swallow your bait, there are apparently many willing to take it on this thread and the pride and ego are running too thick.
Folks just interested in making themselves look smarter by half.
See ya...enjoy your circle jerk...aviation ignorance abounds and when someone who actually worked on the program weighs in...ad hominems follow shortly.
FR doesn’t disappoint, as usual.
So tell us about the Aurora...
You claimed, as shown, the U2 isn’t 50 years old...In fact, it is 58 years old....Yes, it is still being used, albeit updated models, but the fact remains the U2 IS over 50 years old.....
So when he said they were 50 years old he was wrong either way.
With all due respect to the awesome firepower and capabilities of the A-10, it was never really designed as a CAS but a tank and armor buster.
The Army should be authorized to obtain a true CAS aircraft to support soldiers needing soft target engagements. A few have been bantered about recently and remind me of the A1 Skyraider, one of the best true CAS aircraft ever built.
The U2 isn’t 50 years old, those birds were built in the mid 80’s and have about 80% of their airframe life left in them.
I was just replying to what you wrote.
Talk about ego...??
Read what you posted!!
Yes, it was designed as a tank buster, but also took to the CAS role rather well.
As for replacements, I have seen some aircraft that, as you said, are reminiscent of the A-1. One was a modified Agcat and the other was from Beechcraft and based on the T-6 Texan II.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.