109 A-10s facing grounding

This should set off the "Save the A-10 at all costs" crowd. The Air Force is facing having to ground as many as 109 A-10s, and this time there may be no way around it. They're looking at the first aircraft being grounded by next fiscal year, and 55 by 2025.

The aircraft are simply running out of life in their wings, and the Air Force hasn't been able to order new wing sets because they don't have a budget. Under a CR they need congressional approval to allocate funds for it. Congress authorised $103M for restarting wing production and 4 wing sets, but it that authorisation didn't allocate any actual funding. Even if they do get funding, Boeing has hit a delay in delivering them, because of a problem with a composite panel made by a sub contractor. They've delivered 159 of 173 sets ordered.

An interim measure would be to take wings from aircraft in the Boneyard and replace the wings that are timing out with them, but that won't buy them a lot more time, as they already have time on them.

www.defensenews.com...

a reply to: Zaphod58

So do they have anything remotely close to a replacement for the A-10 yet? I know they dont publicly, but could you possibly comment to the simple,fact that they're working or have worked on something possibly not public as a real replacement for the A-10s role?

This is just really sad...I might not see my favorite bird in the skies after what like 2030?

Well when you've got 109 unruly entities on your hands, tell me what kind of discipline you think would be acceptable!?

a reply to: RickyD

They're looking at options. Contrary to what most would have you believe, the light attack experiment at Holloman was NOT being looked at as an A-10 replacement. They're still pretty early into any replacement program though.

This blows. Such a cool plane. We had these at Pope when I first got stationed there, but then they got moved. From what I've read, they're one of the cheapest planes to keep flying. Between that and simply not having anything that can do their mission as well as they can, you would think this would be something everyone agrees we need to save.

The air force must expect drones to replace the a10.

a reply to: Bluntone22

Not any time soon they won't.

I have to say, I'm in the "save the A-10 at any cost crowd". Only because I've loved that aircraft since I was young.

When I was a kid I built static models of it. Several years ago I also built an R/C version of the A-10. I've always thought it was an exceptional warbird.

Loved seeing it occasionally when I was serving in the AF, and an ex of mine worked as a civilian contractor on a base where some were stationed.

a reply to: Sagacity

I love the A-10 to death. They were always a blast to deal with when they came through, and really easy to handle, unlike some others I have mentioned. But, their time is coming to an end. We need to be realistic about our future military. We need to downsize and become more effective at what we do, instead of the bloated force we have now. And outside of a permissive environment, the A-10 is not nearly as effective as it was.

originally posted by: face23785
This blows. Such a cool plane. We had these at Pope when I first got stationed there, but then they got moved. From what I've read, they're one of the cheapest planes to keep flying. Between that and simply not having anything that can do their mission as well as they can, you would think this would be something everyone agrees we need to save.

F-35 is replacing them and the AV8b which has done CAS for the Marines for many years.

a reply to: Zaphod58

That is very true...AA tends to work rather well when the target is very observable and slow. Yet there is still a major role for this type of CAS. Something that can go low and slow and stay on station for a good minute pounding any aggressor in sight. I am just left wondering whats next? What can we come up with that takes the A-10 to the next level. Something which does the job but is less observable and not as easy to target. Also will need to have that signature fear that the A-10 instills in the enemy!

a reply to: RickyD

Sure there is. But until the opposing air force is knocked down, and the antiair is hammered, they're sitting on the ground doing nothing. You can't have forces that you can't use until everything else has beat the hell out of your opponent before it becomes useful.

If wings are the issue its quicker to bolt on new ones than respar them.Old ones will have same issue in time..

a reply to: Blackfinger

Which is why they said that it's an interim fix, until they can get the new wing sets ordered and built.

originally posted by: Zaphod58
a reply to: Sagacity

I love the A-10 to death. They were always a blast to deal with when they came through, and really easy to handle, unlike some others I have mentioned. But, they're time is coming to an end. We need to be realistic about our future military. We need to downsize and become more effective at what we do, instead of the bloated force we have now. And outside of a permissive environment, the A-10 is not nearly as effective as it was.

Completely agree. It's just that nostalgia catching up with me.

This is an interesting article but won't really change your life, nothing new in it.

www.rand.org...

originally posted by: RickyD
a reply to: Zaphod58

That is very true...AA tends to work rather well when the target is very observable and slow. Yet there is still a major role for this type of CAS. Something that can go low and slow and stay on station for a good minute pounding any aggressor in sight. I am just left wondering whats next? What can we come up with that takes the A-10 to the next level. Something which does the job but is less observable and not as easy to target. Also will need to have that signature fear that the A-10 instills in the enemy!

It would have to be something stealthy, that can fire missiles at long distance. The A-10 was basically a Gatling gun on wings. But the air force don't want to risk pilots due to the cost of training and the politics of someone put on camera as a prisoner. I don't think there is anything more terrifying that seeing tanks and vehicles around you exploding for no reason. There are those cluster bombs things that release hundreds of self-targeting missiles that scan for tanks.

Im wondering if new technologies in composites can replace aluminium main spars..Webs are traditionally 7075 aluminium sheet but can it be 3D printed in a matrix setup for additional strength..?

originally posted by: Forensick

originally posted by: face23785
This blows. Such a cool plane. We had these at Pope when I first got stationed there, but then they got moved. From what I've read, they're one of the cheapest planes to keep flying. Between that and simply not having anything that can do their mission as well as they can, you would think this would be something everyone agrees we need to save.

F-35 is replacing them and the AV8b which has done CAS for the Marines for many years.

I know that's one of the advertisements for the F-35, but when you look at what it actually does its not that comparable. No matter how high tech the F-35 is, it can only take out so many targets with that tech. After that, when all it has left is its guns, is it gonna loiter for 30 or 60 minutes flying around the battlefield at low speed taking small arms fire? I doubt it. And the cost to operate is astronomical compared to the A-10.

a reply to: face23785

CAS has changed a lot. Yes, the gun on the A-10 is still incredibly useful, and great for the mission, but now you have B-52s, B-1s, and just about everything else capable of carrying weapons performing CAS.