A-10 Warthogs Could Serve Until 2040

[Feuer Frei!]

So it might be 2040 before the Air Force’s fleet of A-10 Warthog attack jets is replaced by the F-35 and whatever drones emerge in the coming years.
Check out this solicitation for tooling necessary to keep the jets flying until 2040.


This would put the invaluable Hog up there with workhorse jets like the B-52 Stratofortress and KC-135 Stratotanker as planes that will serve until 2040.
This may be due to the fact that the A-10 is such a unique and cost effective weapon. It’s a relatively simple plane that’s tough as nails and can do everything from kill tanks to loiter low and slow over a battlefield dispatching enemy insurgents.
While it’s pretty easy to see the F-35 performing the ground attack and fighter missions of jets like the fast-moving F-16s, it’s harder to see the JSF rolling in slow and unleashing a torrent cannon fire on a beehive of enemies. Do you really want to risk getting a stealth jet all shot up on CAS runs?
Furthermore, could this be a sign that the service is considering slowing of reducing its F-35 buy in favor of keeping more Hogs in service and while focusing on using the JSF to replace F-15s and F-16s, (at least initially)? This last one may be a stretch, but who knows?


SOURCE

[Stealhead]

That sounds like a bit of a stretch 2040(who knows though with the current "nextgen" programs progress and costs) to me but I do know that the A-10 is an "in" plane with the USAF at the moment.Currently many ANG and Reserve units are turning in their F-16s for A-10s mainly because the current conflict in Afghanistan suits the A-10 very nicely and the A-10C is much more capable a COIN air frame than any other USAF air craft including older non upgraded A-10s.

I have a friend a Captain who works in intel with USAF fighter and bomber squadrons(he is the guy that tells the pilots what the bad guys are supposed to have might be capable of) he told me that some brass in the USAF are wanting to acquire a turboprop COIN platform something like the Texan II http://www.defensemedianetwork.com/s...ano-continues/ (already used as a trainer) to perform the COIN mission with the Hog.

Funny as the A-10 was on the chopping block in the late 1980s even due to then fears that Soviet air defense was too strong then it got a re-birth during Desert Storm, for a while in the mid to late 90s most became OA-10s a some what lowered status then in the mid 2000s up the Hog has been born again.

I find the fact that the A-10C is replacing F-16 in some wings very ironic as at one time in the F-16 was taking over the A-10s role now the tables are turned and the Hog gets the last laugh or snort.The improvements that the A-10C has such as the ability to employe JDAMS among other avionics improvements is a huge factor in all of this as is the fact that some of the older F-16s can be sold or loaned to allied nations so it is more multifaceted then it first seems.

I love the Hog though my first base was Davis Mothan(DM on the tail where the A-10 in the pic above is from) I used to smell the jet fuel 10 feet away from A-10s and work in direct support of them every day so I was a member of the Air Force not the Chair Force.

[NeonSamurai]

Well in this sort of conflict the A-10 has the advantage over the F-16. The 16 is a superb multi role fighter (particularly the most recent variants), but it is still a fighter, not a dedicated CAS/Strike platform like the hog. But then in these sort of conflicts you don't need much in the way of fighter support.


Personally I think they should bring back the A-1 Skyraider

[CaptainMattJ.]

ill be an old man by 2040!

Whats that? Warthogs going out in ought' 40 you say? i couldnt quite understand ye. its this darn hearing aid again. Back in Ought' 11, the United states air force had so many warthogs, they filled the sky hehehe. Those were the days. Did you know computers usually only had 8 gigabytes of Ram in those days!! And ran Direct x11! oh my were they slow!

Personally I think they should bring back the A-1 Skyraider

Now that was a aircraft project where they definately got full value for money.

[Skybird]

Never was a fan of the F-35 myself. And too expensive it is anyway. It would even be too expensive for an economy in better financial state than it is the case.

In preparation of getting my DVD next week (German release date), I recently did a lot of reading about the A-10C. And the more I learned about it, the more I realised what a great fighterplane it is in the C-version.

[Oberon]

If it ain't broke...

And it sure ain't broke.

Go ugly early baby, roll it hot.

[joea]

Heck didn't the HMS Victory serve for a long time? Keep flying Warthog.

[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by Feuer Frei!

This would put the invaluable Hog up there with workhorse jets like the B-52 Stratofortress and KC-135 Stratotanker as planes that will serve until 2040.

If they're going to keep the B-52s until 2040 then they ought to stretch it out until 2055. The only aircraft ever to stay in service for 100 years!

[Syxx_Killer]

I'm glad they're gonna keep the Warthog around for a while. Every so often they fly around overhead. I love to watch them when I can. Those things make an incredible noise! Everytime I see one I think how glad I am they are on our side.

[Stealhead]

Originally Posted by CaptainMattJ.

ill be an old man by 2040!

Whats that? Warthogs going out in ought' 40 you say? i couldnt quite understand ye. its this darn hearing aid again. Back in Ought' 11, the United states air force had so many warthogs, they filled the sky hehehe. Those were the days. Did you know computers usually only had 8 gigabytes of Ram in those days!! And ran Direct x11! oh my were they slow!

Guess you have never heard of upgrading avionics systems.This is done all the time no single airframe stays up to date for very long and needs to be improved.In some cases like the B-52 and it should seem the A-10 the basic airframe can be extended many years.This does not mean that from an electronic standpoint that a B-52H of 2011 or A-10 of 2011 is anything like what came of the production line originally.(not sure if you are being sarcastic in your post or what)


A few times during Vietnam the USAF who got all their A-1s from ex-Navy stock(they stopped building them in the late 50's) looked into starting limited production of A-1s but it was determined to have been too expensive.

I think today the best option is the A-10C and some sort of smaller turboprop like the Texan II or the Tucano will work nicely.A new A-1 would be more costly because they'd have to use the old radial engines which require much more maintenance than turbofans and turboprops do and it would need to have modernized avionics making it very expensive.The A-1 was an impressive plane but its time has passed and it deserves its retirement.

That is why a modern turboprop like a Texan II with some upgrades is a very good match with the A-1OC you'd have the Hunter and the Killer.Much like the AH-1 and OH-6 back in Vietnam or the AH-64 and OH-58 today.

@Syxx that is because the Michigan ANG flies A-10s they are based at Selfridge where ever that is in Michigan.Another ANG unit that swapped F-16s for A-10s.

Hope no one is an F-16 fan because the oldest ones are going to become QF-16s for use at Tyndall.If you do not knew Q stands for drone....target drone in other words missiles says boom QF-16 is "retired".

[Skybird]

South of Osnasbrück, in the Teutoburger Forest region, there is a bigger forest with hilly terrain and a "mountain" ridge, the region belongs to Georgsmarienhütte. I used to study in Osnabrück when the A-10s and other combat planes still practiced low flights in Germany frequently. Supersonic bursts and low flying Tornados, Phantoms and I think Jaguars were part of the week. I love that region and forest and strolled around there quite often.

There are two observation towers on that ridge, some hundred meters apart, you have 360° view from there. I once happened to stand on one of the platforms, when a pair of Warthogs came by. Combat planes often used that ridge/mountain top probably as a navigation mark, you also often saw them changing course right over that terrain feature (but I think it is not the place where the VOR OSN is located, that is some kilometers away). Also, Bundeswehr camps were often to be met on that ridge when walking there. Those towers are quite high, the planes were in trail formation, and on that day they almost flew on the same eye level with me, standing on that platform. That was awesome, even more so, since the second pilot seems to have seen me, because he raised his arm and waved and I believe it was a greeting he gave me - he was on same eye level with me, they were flying very very low over that hilltop, and so close that the plane from top to tail was so long that it appeared longer than the distance between my spreaded hand's tips of the thumb and the little finger when raising my arm.

That was a stunning meeting on that day, really. I think somewhere I even have an old slide of another A-10 on another day that I caught with a 600mm reflector when passing that tower, not so close like above, but still illustrating they used those towers as navigation points, probably.

[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by Stealhead

(not sure if you are being sarcastic in your post or what).

It wasn't even sarcasm. He was just making a little joke about how old he'll be then. I thought it was pretty good.

[Stealhead]

Yeah I did not really even think about that I suppose it makes alot of sense then what he said though he wont be all that old I will in my early 60s by 2040 I will be "old". He will still be 25 years from retiring while I will be only 10 years from retiring if things keep going the way they do.

Who knows maybe the singularity will have occurred by then and we will all be slaves of now much smarter than humans self aware computers who will electronically laugh at our primitive aircraft.Maybe we will use A-10s and B-52s to bomb Skynet.

[Sailor Steve]

If I'm still around I'll be 90, and probably won't care much one way or the other. But whatever happens I'll probably say "See? I told you so!"




And of course "Get off my lawn!"