I'm a Sniper, Fighter Pilot Ace, Submarine Captain, Astronaut, and Super Spy. I don't often drink beer, but when I do, I make sure its not Dos Equis :D (seriously its terrible beer).

Anyways as to the topic. Honestly I'm not all that impressed with this proposed aircraft, for similar reasons as to what has already been stated. The biggest problem as I see it, is that the ordinance payload is very low. An F-16c Block 50 can carry almost twice the ordinance at about 17,000 lbs. Its also an extremely flexible combat platform, able to perform just about any air based combat mission you can think of. Plus this aircraft is still in production (and in a similar price bracket). The Scorpion really sounds more like an export aircraft. Plus who knows if the aircraft will actually be anywhere near its claimed 3000$ per hour operating costs (which historically have tend to be grossly underestimated)

As for the Hog. I agree with Oberon. Much as I like the plane, I think its time is nearly done. Its a tough plane when it comes to AAA and Manpads, but it's much more vulnerable to SAMs and AAMs. As was mentioned the GAU-8 also has some pretty strong limitations, and I'm not sure it would be worth mounting on future aircraft. I think you would be better off with a 20 or 25mm cannon for use on softer targets, and stick to missiles and smart bombs (like the CBU-97/105) for dealing with tanks.

One of the best things about retiring a military aircraft is surviving flyable examples. Like the B-17, B-29, the Skyraiders and mustangs etc.

One thing that really bothered me about the F-14 retirement is the fate of our existing models. I spoke with a former F-14 driver some years back... he said that every surviving example had all of the avionics and instruments removed, engines removed, hydraulic and electric systems gutted and once the various salvageable pieces had been removed, they used a torch to cut the main wing spar in half so that essentially when you visit a museum piece F-14 its just a skeleton with its skin still on and nothing underneath.

this was done to prevent parts falling into the hands of Iran who still are in possession of at least 28 flyable F-14s by recent estimates.

It would be shameful to see the A-10 suffer a similar fate. I would prefer to see at least a few of them maintained in flying condition by either the Commemorative Air Force or the Collings Foundation or similar organizations