Yeah the F-35 is indeed a beast, but not NEARLY as scary for a ground force to look at. I think it’s biggest upper hand is it’s speed and stealth capability as well as the VTOL. That being said, the A-10 is a fucking tank-a gun with wings. It’s capable of flying much slower and therefore lower. Not to mention it’s appearance-so recognizable and therefor striking fear into the very core of the enemy. They very much prioritize their man on the ground and will rock your world if you fuck with that man
That is a fact! That aircraft saved my ass at least 2 times that I can think of and probably 5 times that I don’t even know about. When I was in Iraq and Afghanistan as a grunt on the ground I literally watched this beautiful beast mow through a group of buildings that we were taken fire from as if they were made from papier-mâché. Many of us owe our life to the A-10 and I would be absolutely heartbroken to see it go. 🇺🇸💪🏼
Yes, this. As a matter of fact, the F-35 can be replaced by a drone for CAS missions. Whereas, the A-10 cannot. The USAF needs to continue to diversify its CAS roles, so the A-10 needs to stay.
When I was in the Army, my friend and neighbor, was an A-10 mechanic. He gave me an up close and personal tour one time. He explained that the engines are designed to eject small arms rounds and small fragments before they get to the internals. Even slow, the minimal profile is difficult to hit. If it does get hit, I'm not sure it cares. He saw (and I saw the pictures) A-10s nearly shot in half return to base. Enemy soldiers that did attempt to shoot one down, were pretty much just giving away the location of the next strafing run. It's a tough aircraft that has no equal in its designed role, and deserves continued service.
The A-10 works really well against insurgencies or nations with extremely little in the ways of AA capabilities. During the Gulf war the A-10 had to be pulled back from the front lines because they started getting shot down, and the F-16 took over their job against the Republican Guard whilst the A-10 were re-assigned to less "dangerous" areas. And when it came to taking out tanks, they generally did it witch Maverick missiles and not their gun, because their gun can't really penetrate modern mbts. So when fighting a military which is fairly well armed, the A-10 would just not be worth it. As for being able to "take" damage. The A-10 is 'easily' shot down by a rocket, but can survive quite a few rounds of conventional AA. However you don't really want any planes to take that damage. Because that plane is now out of the rotation, and have to wait hours/days/weeks/etc. until it can fly again. You want the planes in the air harrassing the enemy, not on the ground being fixed. Which is why they want to replace it, because its main job originally was to destroy tanks. Which it does with rockets, which any planes can fire and from safer positions. But as for providing really close air support with its gun, its usefulness there is against generally poorly armed irregular forces.
As a former Marine, there is no aircraft that is more appreciated than the Warthog for Air to ground support!! Period!! So glad they are updating this aircraft for future missions. This aircraft dominates in the area it was designed for, close ground support!
As long as it has the same linger time over target and mission capable ordinance ability as its namesake, I'm all for it. If the Air Force doesn't want it, the Army has already said it will take it, the airframes, men, support systems and close support mission to protect our ground troops. The Air Force only pointed to the 1948 Key West Agreement after they also saw the proposed budget cuts by Congress, they acquiesced to continue flying these airframes.
The A-10 Warthog is a perfect example of an apex weapon system that everyone wants to replace because of politics, career ambition, money and ego. It is one of the few platforms that has become MORE effective as the nature of conflict has evolved. Its highly robust, incredibly reliable AND cheap. Not only that, but because nearly every pilot comes home, you have a cadre of pilots that are masters of their craft. When REAL war against an equal foe happens, that will mean more than it does now... mark my words. If the A-10 Warthog has one fault it is this ..... its basically embarrassing all the people who are trying to get kickbacks from aviation and military firms who are trying to market its replacement (a replacement that nobody asked for and nobody needs.) The A-10 is godly and anyone trying replace it needs to check their headspace. It works brilliantly, it has incredibly low losses, its easy to deploy. If any A-10 pilot reads this... thank you for your excellent service.
The second fault is a track record of blue on blue Didn’t a a-10 pilot strafe a British convoy because he thought it was the enemy? If they give it a system that isn’t a pair of binoculars for the pilot it would be perfect
The A-10 is in no way cheap and is limited by its initial production runs .. the ARES Mudfighter program was designed to create a low-cost and engineering solution to the shortcomings of the A-10 ua-cam.com/video/zG9LlHcX8lg/v-deo.html
It has to be mentioned that the USAF have lost more A10s than any other plane and it is responsible for more Friendly and civilian deaths than any other current plane.
@@ElmerGLue due you know why the a10 is so fear and has stayed around for so long? Because it's like a freakin honey badger. It takes a hell of a beating completing its mission and still make it back home. Even when missing an engine or part of wing. The guys on the ground love the a10
@@ElmerGLue You are ahead of the curve. It's going the way of robotics; but present robotics are not a replacement for a pilot. At best, present vision systems can recognize a class of vehicle, for example, but they consume too much power to be mounted on a weapon, and they don't have the intelligence to form a mental picture of a situation and modify the mission accordingly. All they can do is go to coordinates X and Y, recognize this type of target and attack it. By contrast, the A-10 is a low flying plane that allows the pilot the close-up view and the reaction time to make decisions adapted to the circumstances. I can see AI and robotics replacing bombers and strike craft at first; interceptors second; but ground support LOOONG after. We're nowhere near there. The A-10's will be THE LAST role to be replaced by robotic craft.
@@ElmerGLue They're a good addition to the toy box but they don't replace a piloted aircraft because the vast majority of drones aren't armed. Flying a drone is not the same as flying the plane. You don't have a feel for the aircraft and the view from the moniter is comparable to the pilot looking through a straw. The situational awareness is severely limited. P.S. You don't fight wars with what's on the drawing board. You fight with what you have. They make EMP handguns so they already have a "off the shelf tech" to counter drones or a drone swarm. The reason we don't use EMP guns currently is because they're too indiscriminate. The effected area is too broad. If the target is a drone swarm that wide beam of effect suddenly becomes a asset.
@@ElmerGLue if AI was the way to go and we had all we needed the F35 and the F16ex would be AI operated... instead they both offer a pilot plus AI assistant mode... because AI cannot keep up with a true human pilot... please do some research...
Having the A-10 taking care of the enemy while on the ground with my Marines and Sailors was a divine blessing, saving the life of all of us. The reality is that close air support is utmost integral part for the success of many missions, especially in the early stages of the war. This is an essential asset that no salty, combat ridden or experienced infantry commander would like to be without.
I don’t believe there will be a Stealthy A-10, my opinion , take it for what it’s worth it it would be nice for an upgraded version but Fairchild has been defunct for years. The A-10 as well as the AC-130 has saved countless lives
Four old generation Warthogs would have destroyed the 40 mile long Russian convoy heading into Ukkraine never mind the updated version, nice upload kind regards from England and Glory for Ukraine.
It would have, assuming the convoy had no air defenses. Russian knows they can’t beat the US in an air battle, so they’ve invested in perhaps the most advanced anti air defense systems on the planet.
@@gavincleland9010 Over a period of a couple days they sure could. Hit em in the front, hit em in the back then hit em down the middle. RTB as many times as needed
I am retired Army and while on active duty I witnessed first hand the devastation of an A10 strike that was in conjunction with companies/battalions of Kiowa and Apaches. The most destructive events of my life and with all the firepower and coordination of moving parts, it was like a beautiful ballet. Needs to be seen and heard to be believed. 😉
That's why when it comes to military flight simulators like the *Ace Combat* franchise the A-10 Warthog is my go-to attack plane for air to ground sorties. There can be like 3 futuristic concept attack planes with superior air to ground capabilities and I'll still select the Warthog just for the BBRRRRRRTT.
@Lazys The Dank Engineer Time and a place for everything. If the bad guys have anti aircraft missiles, anything with wings is at risk if it is within the strike envelope.
Only the A-10 can perform a slow low altitude close air support role and with the Pave Penny laser detector system it can lock on to targets being lased and fire precision laser guided weapons. The F-35 is a great multi roll aircraft but no aircraft can match the A-10's specific close air ground support role. Just ask the guys on the ground.
@@lordbrain8867 true, but in the old days of really OLD Avionics and No Really sure way to ID Friend from Foe, with all the Modernisation mentioned in this Video it's a completely *Different Story* XD GreeTs and G0D Bless you all †
@@adarret 😅 lets HOPE that doesn't happen, because Helicopters are comparatively SITTING DUCKS to Stinger Like Missiles when compared to the A-10's Maneuverability/Speed, Armor and Countermeasures
@@benygh911, the thing is that slow jets that can loiter are a pain to design, eventually they’ll design a V-22 descendant, a helicopter/rotor craft that can hover and maneuver like a helicopter yet also be able to go fast like a jet, my guess is that they’ll keep the A-10 flying till then or till Manpads are SO common, like rifle common, that the A-10 can’t really fly and is a sitting target…
During Desert Shield / Desert Storm I was a member of the Reconnaissance for Taskforce Papa Bear. Part of our orders were to spot enemy targets and call in Airstrikes, we had on call air every 5-minutes if we needed it. The A-10 Warthog and pilots flying them saved our asses many times, and decimated enemy targets with ease.
I was a a-10 crew chief for 25 years and since retiring miss it so much. I was even able to train with the f-35 when it first came out and the a-10 is so much more suited to close air support Both air craft have great value but the a-10 cant be matched for what it does.
A-10 for close ground support, F-35 for close air support of the A-10, and the F-22 flying air dominance cover. The A-10, is too good at what it does, to proven to be a very good aircraft. It is one of very few designs from the 4th gen that is more than worth the money to upgrade to keep around for another 25 years. Like I stated above, passed the A-10, F-35, F-22 - what other aircraft would ever be required. Ok B-52 still handy - but what situation in todays wars could not be handled extremely effectively by either the A-10, F-35 or F-22? Hell the F-22 and F-35 make the F-1117 and B2 pointless.
So glad to see the Warthog will remain in our arsenal. It is such a unique, necessary, and very effective design to support our ground troops. There is no way an F35 could do what the A10 does so well.
The new,improved, upgraded A10 may be an immense improvement over the original Warthog, but will probably never be as revered, respected, relied upon or loved like the original one. They've added new wings, upgraded electronics and weapons but the close ground support attack aircraft will be hard to top. They say that on the battlefield, if you hear the Warthog's main gun firing, you weren't the target.
You got THAT Right About The WartHog & the enemies!😉 God Bless..God's Speed... Stay Frosty Brothers & Sisters... F35 can go suck lemons! A10 All The Way...and Upgraded too? Common Air Force.. Quit Humiliating We Who Wear The Name... WartHog All The Way.. Thank You! God Bless..God's Speed... Stay Frosty Brothers & Sisters 5:5 Wheels Up A10 WARTHOG..PERIOD🚁🐕 🇺🇲🦅🇺🇲🥇
My Cavalry unit participated in testing of the A-10 thermal imaging sight that allowed the pilot to detect targets in low visibility, fog, night, etc. Our tanks were not allowed to run our crew heaters in the freezing German winter to test the systems ability to detect us from engine compartment heat alone. Just prior to flyover we'd fire blank 105mm rounds and the aircraft would actually detect heat from the guntube. Warsaw Pact tanks did not have crew heaters and any tank commander that ran their heater would result in the entire tank to glow on the pilots screen. No one did. We ran these scenarios with different formations for 30 days freezing our b*lls off. Tests were successful and the Air Force threw us a party at Ramstein AFB. That same TTS system was later adapted and installed in M-60A3 tanks. Hard to believe that was almost 50 years ago.
Many years ago I served in marine tanks and during a training operation I poped up over a hill and came face to face with a A-10. I can tell you that is one scary sight and it made me realize how awesome that aircraft is for ground support
Cheaper doesn't always mean better this proves it as the A10 was a propaganda machine for both sides it kills civilians faster than the American soldiers and kills its own soldiers faster than the enemy planes
The A-10 reminds me of a hawk if you’ve ever seen a hawk flying high up and circling in wide circles that’s basically what the A10 does over the battlefield circles picking out targets then goes in for the kill
Sounds like you moved around a bit. What's your resume look like? My dad was stationed at Barksdale (Shreveport), Osan (Korea), Edwards (Lancaster), and finally Elmendorf (Anchorage) before it was designated JBER (Elmendorf/Richardson).
@@t-jh4236 born Tripler AMC when dad was flying 15’s then transferred to Yokota in Japan. Lived there for most of my life with short stints all over Asia. Then when I was 16 back to Hawaii. Then after my little brothers graduation Myrtle Beach South Carolina.
@@t-jh4236 born Tripler AMC when dad was flying 15’s then transferred to Yokota in Japan. Lived there for most of my life with short stints all over Asia. Then when I was 16 back to Hawaii. Then after my little brothers graduation Myrtle Beach South Carolina.
The brrt bird is a living legend. No other aircraft in the world instills fear and panic for enemies that see it. Wanting to retire the a10 is borderline treasonous in my opinion.
5:52 "... sometimes it is equipped with a titanium bathtub ... ". Sometimes? What ... you think they remove the entire titanium armour package when they feel like they don't need it? It's not a flak vest. It's a permanent part of each A-10.
I've always viewed the A-10 as an air tank. Designed for both ground support as well as supply a distraction to the enemy, especially since it's tough to hide in the air. it's built for it's role perfectly and every expansion and upgrade is meant to make it better in it's dedicated role
Pretty much this. The Air Force's concerns over the A-10s survivability stems from the fact that nearly all American jets in service make use of stealth characteristics as the primary form of defense. But when the jet eventually gets hit, that hit will almost always result in the loss of the airframe. Meanwhile, the A-10 uses armor as its primary means of survival. The same hit that would inevitably down the F-35 would be shrugged off by the A-10, and it'd continue flying in defiance.
@crazyjr It's not an army air vehicle. It still falls under the purview of the Air Force, like a vast majority of the combat jets the United States Military uses. In fact, when they were initially talking about retiring the A-10, the army offered to buy it off the Air Force, but the USAF absolutely refused. I can only speculate as to why, but if I had to guess, the USAF didn't want to let the army use an aircraft with such a well known legacy, despite the fact that the USAF was wanting to retire the A-10 to free up budget for their over-engineered F-35 that had already sucks up money equal to the cost of *eight* A-10s. Seriously. An A-10 costs about 10 million per machine. A F-35? Almost $80 million. And that was pre-pandemic numbers.
They are two different platforms. Prior to Desert Storm the Airforce hated the A-10 and wanted to replace it. Because they had so many and they were not very old the Airforce wanted to give them to the Army. They wanted Infantry officers (O2-O4) to take over the AC. During Desert Storm the AC was the hero of the day and the Airforce dropped the idea of giving them away.
There's a catch. USAF wants to give the A10 to Army. However, USAF does not want to give the sustainment budget money for the A10 to Army, nor does USAF want to compromise on the Key West Treaty and allow Army to fly fixed wing platforms in general - more budget money to lose.
You can always count on the Air Farce to come up with a bad idea and then promote it heavily. The military really needs a firm civilian oversight system, instead of the incredibly stupid Congress.
Anyone who has fought over seas knows exactly how necessary the a10 is! It doesn’t have to prove anything it already has! I know I’m far from the only one who can say that hand of god in the sky saved my life on many occasions!!
If you have ever seen the A10s demonstration of what it can do to ground targets you have a very good idea how necessary it is. My dad was in the Air Force for 30 years and I got a behind the scenes demonstration of cannon firing a dry run. In person and up close is was frightening. Couldn't imagine being shot at with that thing. Glad it's on our side.
Is the tidbit about US ground troops having to take cover when they call one in accurate? Would it be right to say it is a risky weapon. But when it kills the group of bad guys that were suppressing you, it’s a gamble that your willing to take?
I was rooting for the A-10 in the competition. It is an agile tank killer with new wings and updated Cockpit Suite. It would be a unbelievable weapon in Ukraine today and would send the Russians packing. The F-35 is an incredible 5th generation fighter that provide air to ground capability. The A-10 is proven with years of service and my choice.
Most of the benefits of the A-10C would be lost due to the need to fly extremely low, and frankly the look down capability of Russian IADS would still destroy it. Russian IADS is relatively complete and there is no possibility of flight - of any model of aircraft.
Wouldn't it make more sense for the two, A-10 and F-35, work well together? The F-35 would take out or neutralize the SAM systems then the A-10 could destroy the softer targets. I'm no air force expert but it seems like they would have a complimentary relationship because they're so different but essential.
@@cavaleermountaineer3839 F-35 would be detected by Russia. In Iraq, AGM-88 had an 18% success rate against S-75 Dvina. Against modern Russian IADS it's very, very unlikely to leak through.
All these videos show a "new concept A10".... Ok, let's do it! Time is now! It's proven it's need. As long as there's a battlefield there's need for A10s.
Are you kidding? Give me an A-10 Warthog anytime on the battlefield! I was stationed in Germany's Frankfurt / Wurzburg area and you could hear that Hog's "flight" signature even around all that greenery. It sounded like an approaching 5/10 K generators coming at Ya. Wait that's because it's still far away until that sound of death singing like a Gatling gun! I'm so surprised that they are still in the inventory. We all loved those planes. Just keep on upgrading 6, 7, 8 ... till kingdom come! We felt safe cause they flew low at tree height! Just keep them around for those actual special runs that only they can accomplish. I'm an old soldier at the age of 64. Can I get a witness?
Keep the A10 it's really a well built platform and it's really not a old aircraft when you compared it to the B52 bomber. Both of these aircraft have proven its self time and time again. My brother worked on the wing of this plane back in 1973 for Fairchild Republic Corporation in Amityville New York and it's truly a testament of how well this plane was built that it still fly's today better then ever. I'm really glad that it finally got some of the well deserved Avionic upgrades which should make it even more deadly and effective in today's combat environment. Please Keep the Magnificent A10!
As a crew chief on the A model, I was told that a basic CAS maneuver was the Figure Eight. The plane would dive firing on a target, recover, come around, renew the attack, recover and renew. The A-10 was said to put more fire on a target in less time than anything but a Spectre gunship. Per round, the Spectre costs at least four times as much. And it is designed for tactics very different from those in the A-10 portfolio. Here are some old numbers, off the cuff. Ten thousand pounds of JP-4, $1600. One thousand rounds of 30mm depleted uranium, classified. True battlefield superiority, priceless.
It is the 800bl gorilla in the sky. The line from blazing saddles comes to mind when Hugo comes to town ."No no don't shoot him, you'll just make him mad" and then your find out you brought a gun to a cannon fight! U know it is a fighter aircraft but hearing from the people that it has protected and watched over in battle i could easily picture a vicious warrior dragon throwing fire at everything that even looks at us gold that it protects! I know 3 guys that owe their lives to those air crews pilots and aircraft!
The A-10 was designed to be a long loitering very Close Air Support, or CAS aircraft, also excels at escort/support CSAR helicopters. Which is to assist infantry with more than a flyby airstrke or 2. The F-35 and A-10 are both designed for missions where the other aircraft does not belong. Can you imagine an F35 doing multiple strafing runs at or below 500ft or less on a treeline, or supporting helicopters to recover wounded, and downed pilots. Or an A-10 at or above 10kft over heavily radar, and fighter contested airspace, dropping precision guided munitions on an early warning radar, or command vehicle. Use the tool for its purpose, and let it do it's job, not kinda other tools jobs. Would you use a hack saw to drive a nail, or a claw hammer to cut metal pipe?
@Lazys The Dank Engineer Their is also psychological value to having air support visible overhead, and watching a radar return magically appear or disappear that is active and aggressive. Often the number of kills is not as important as the location and circumstances of those kills. Ask FAC's( Forward Air Controller/ CCT) , and PJ'S- Air Force Para-rescuemen. They are professionals in calling in Danger close CAS, which aircraft type is their preference. I think its more like 10pd sledge hammer, and a finishing hammer. Both can do the same job, but it isn't necessarily the best tool for the job. Similar to this discussion we both agree the A10 and F35 are good attack aircraft, but may have differences in the missions assigned. Hope you have a great day.
So those convoys in the Ukraine, didn't need strafing,nor close air attention??? Are there enough 35s to obtain air superiority? Well use them for the dogfighting,air king, and the tank buster to bust tanks... Simple.. an f35 could never slow down enough to do the 10s job,and loiter
A A-10 is to tanks what a P-9 is to submarines. Low, slow and on target. Finding those AA things are what infantry is for. Artillery response when in range. Or drops from 35,000 feet and higher are next. The A-10 is for clean up
The F-35 isn't even that good at achieving air superiority. I'm not saying it's bad (though it took an ungodly amount of money to make it "not bad"), but it's still outclassed by the older F-22. The only reason it has any advantage in the sky is its combat suite.
It's simple, if the F-22s and especially the F-35s do their jobs (gain and maintain air gain and maintain ground support operations). The military has tried to create multi-purpose systems (like the F-35), but keep forgetting they can't be the "best" at everything so make them the best at some things and have others the best at a few or one thing and evolve them to always be the "BEST".
The A10 has been my favorite plane ever built since i discovered it! It is the in your face brutal armored flying gun! Everything on it is built off the largest gun ever put in the sky.! The gun is so powerful in early development the problem of the gun causing the plane to stall because it was stronger than the engine had to be ironed out till keep it from causing the aircraft to stall ! I don't remember exactly what the fix was but that is to this day a gun that no tank can survive a signal hit from. And the aircraft has has 2 hydraulic backup systems and can still be flown with all electronics gone, and because the firing barrel of the cannon is in the absolute center if the aircraft the pilot can point the A10 at the target and fire the cannon with all electronics fine and still destroy targets as long as it can be seen visibly! Plus the aircraft can still fly with about 50% of it missing for whatever reason it is my choice here and always ! What is tuffer than nails it is the A 10 ! If i had to fly into hell i would put my money on the A10 to get me there and there is a dam good odds on taking out the devil and getting me back as well!
you really think people came here to find out what Tom's favorite plane is then herar you rant about it? Get over yourself this isn't your channel we truly couldn't care any less
Every modern tank made after the 70's can survive a hit from the gun...the A-10 only gets tank kills from missiles. Even on old model T-72's it would be exclusively luck on decommissioning the tank for more than a day
@@marw9541 You have a valid point . The tank still has a place on the field and it is still a threat in combat . But to my knowledge there isnt another aircb raft that is as durable and even though it can be hit and hurt the aircraft can protect the pilot and is purpouse built to take ground fire and can still fly with astonishing amounts of the plane missing. With two backup systems for everything it can still operate and be flown with all electrical systems gone. Without the cannon it is going to take a lot of abuse and continue the support of those on the ground. Even flying low and giving visual assistance with all ammo spent A10 piolits take fire over and over and save lives on the ground!!
@@tomstevens6833 Yes the tank is still important on the field and yes the A-10 can take quite a bit of small arms fire, but this is not a typical engagement in modern war against symmetrical (or at least more symmetrical than the Taliban) opponents. Ground fire is not important when you are outside the effective range, as well as the ability to launch over the horizon missile attacks. Also the A-10 pilots have been shown to horribly misidentify targets and fire on friendly columns of light armoured infantry vehicles, so having a man with eyes in the sky when we have AWAX systems and ground radar, the A-10 will not be able to keep up with modern information systems that share data to give one the newest edge in warfare. By the way, this isn't me telling you to hate the A-10. It's a fun plane, and tempered opinions of it don't detract from your love for the aircraft. I personally really love the F-15 even though I know the F-15EX will be its last hoorah, but I wouldn't ever want to misunderstand the abilities of one of my favorite aircraft. Your favorite plane doesn't need to be the best, so I hope it doesn't sound like I'm just being a massive buzzkill. I'm simultaneously having this argument with someone else who is far more aggressive so I feel like maybe I might have been a little too harsh here.
I used to live near Ft Leonard Wood Army base. My dad was an old pilot for fixed wing on the Mekong Delta in Vietnam. Because of this, the A-10's would rock their wings for us if they could see us. They could often go below the tree line on our our farm. We loved when they would slow down and then pull up. Both of those engines would pull so much air that that they warped light on both ends. I used to call them " testicle jets". That is what they look like with those two engines mounted to the back. They used to blow us around sometimes. They stopped sometime in the 80's???
I remember when I was in the Air Force and got to watch a video about the different planes in operation, the first time I saw the A-10 it was immediately my favorite warplane, and still is. That was in the late 1980s.
Very fortunate as a child in the '70's & 80's to spend holidays on my late Grandfather's farm in Suffolk which was about 10 miles away from the twin-bases of RAF Woodbridge and Bentwaters where A-10s were stationed (prior was the F4 and what a beast that was to see fly low and fast over the fields!). Can still hear the unique whine of those A-10 engines and loved watching them do their practice manoeuvres over the Deben estuary. I also have an A-10 round which I got from the Farnborough Air Show in the mid'70s - to think 4,200 of these come out of that gun in a minute is mind-blowing.
That payloadnowcan send missiles to kill SU 35's and 57's without having to stay on point. Those long distance missiles can end those jets and not be bothered. The A10C is like Hercules tough!!
I'm an ex-matelot. I was lucky enough to be able to talk to one of the pilots of the old A-10 at an air show. He showed me over the plane, and about his time in combat. From what he told me, and looking at the capabilities of it, don't bump into it on a bad day.
Sounds to me like the Air Force don't want to get rid of the warthogs. And you got to admit it is one of the best slow go close air to ground combat plane ever built. And if you ask the troops on the ground which plane they like the best I'm pretty sure they going to say the a-10. That 18 is one awesome badass plane. I wish I had the money to buy me one. I like to have it just to go out and cruise around on. You know it have to be fun. A-10 warthog super A-10 thunderbolt 2 awesome. 😀👍🇺🇸
It's not the air force but old men in congress as well as the companies supplying the upgrade that want to keep the A-10, the actual individuals in charge do not want it around. It has the most blue on blue kills of any American aircraft to date
The Warthog and the Apache helicopter are two of the best ground support aircraft in the US military. The cotton picking bureaucrats can't leave well enough alone. Many of them are probably bought off and would have no problem trying to end either one of these amazing programs. BTW, the Apache is also amazingly ballistically tolerant and can take a heck of a beating and remain flying. Two great weapons for sure.
I’ve not served in any of our military forces. I’m sure this has been talked about. I’ve just not come across it yet. Too me, having both these incredible fighter jets. Supporting each other. Both are amazing at protecting troops. Up close and from a distance. Thank you to those that serve. 🙏🏻
I was looking for the aircraft that caused me to click on this video. I didn't see or any mention of it. It looked more like an A-14. Is this a re-occurring theme of these type of videos?
@@James_Musnicki probably. They put out a video of the updated super-raptor f-22, but seem to have forgotten that they don't and can't even make the old one anymore.
We always forget that a-10 take multiple precision guide hits and F-22 and F-35 can’t. Moreover, A-10 survival is flawless where as 1 f-22 and several f-35 were lost.
Videos like this remind me of how truly revolutionary the USAF Boyd Fighter Mafia was in the '70s. They drop kicked the USAF Brass that was retarding effective platforms and forced through the F15, F16, and A10, providing effective high/low air superiority and CAS for 50 years. USAF Brass have resented them ever since. Even the loser in the F16 fly-off, the YF17, was evolved into the USN's F18. Amazing quality delivered.
If it was a fighter it'd start with an F, it starts with an A, for Attack (Or Ground Attack/ CAS). Historically the Fighter Jet side of the Air Force (Aka command) doesn't want the purpose built A10, they want to use whatever fighter they have and give it the role(aka the funding). This is why the WW2 Skyraider wound up as one of the best CAS planes in Vietnam. At one point the USAF, in trying to decline the project that would become the a-10, tried to pass on the CAS role all together, but the marines jumped up and put forth a proposal to take over the role (And all the funding that went with it) The USAF changed course instantly reclaiming the role, but they still don't' really want it, just the budget it brings. (thus the attempt to move the funding to the f-35).
It's crazy how much that plane fits the Marines. I would drop everything I'm doing to have a chance at flying that thing. Such a cool plane and being that close to the fight would be unreal.
@@cwr8618 I went through Marine OCS hoping to fly the F-18, Harriet or Bronco, but I always thought this would be perfect for the Marines mission and a hoot to fly.
Getting to see the A-10 in flight I think I was more excited then kids are on Christmas. As a soldier I can relate how one might feel that nothing's impossible when you have an A-10 flying over you. The A-10 even had a cameo appearance in the show Seal Team, which my wife and I watch. She thought it was funny how when the scene began I suddenly sat up and said OMG that's an A-10 Warthog, and began to tell my wife, oh they're in trouble now(referring to the enemy), couldn't even finish the sentence before the A-10 cleared them all out.
The Army's battlefield should be changed to battlebubble, and the A-10 moved to the Army along with pilots of course. The Air Force would continue to be tasked with air superiority and elimination of air defenses prior to the Army bringing their battlebubble to bear.
If I had 20/20 vision, I wanted to fly the Hog! I was obsessed with that plane, especially after witnessing low fly-overs. It would fly so low that they would pop over the treetops and be flying away before you knew they were coming! I liked the "Thunder and Lightning" idea, with the Thunderbolt and Lightning flying together in unison.
There's a reason why the Warthog has a second nickname with pilots, it's called the "Flying Bathtub". Virtually bulletproof cockpit, multiple redundancies in controls and tough as nails engines. It's been designed to not only survive small arms fire at close range, the Warthog flys slow enough to take out enemy ground positions that fire on it. F35 is a stealth fighter / bomber. Probably why it doesn't have a Vulcan Cannon on it's nose or air to ground rockets in it's bays.
Sometimes you have a perfectly designed tool that only gets better with technology. You'll never change the saw, screwdriver, knife, wrench, hammer, keyboard, pipes, roads, etc etc. The basic form is what it is. We've improved those tools, but until we reach a level of such knowledge that completely changes our understanding of forms, it's simply a perfect aircraft design for it's job
I always thought that the A10 was far superior for ground support. It is airy. It can sneak up on the enemy. Plus the titanium used can with stand ground fire. I never have been in the military, but keep up on new developments.
those numbers cannot be verified on any military records!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!@@jamesjross The simple answer is the USAF wants the money, from the A10 budget and getting rid of it opens ups the check book!!
Air Force? Well the AF Generals that are trying to get away from that mission have their heads in the clouds of fighter glory and don’t comprehend the A-10 close air support mission for the 11B on receiving end of the contact in the field. They try to fantasize about the Air To Air and that the ground mission doesn’t exist, it’s just part of their fantasy! So happy that Congress is keeping them in line!
Let F-35 be at the technological edge, stealth, fast, high-flying, loaded with much missiles. Let A10 be not so vulnerable to electronic attack, and low cost.
@Lazys The Dank Engineer Sure, but an A-10 that can at least fly far enough to a safe ejection point is better than an F-35 that has to eject immediately.
Not to mention a morale boost to troops that you just can’t put a price tag on. The A-10 is iconic.
Yeah the F-35 is indeed a beast, but not NEARLY as scary for a ground force to look at. I think it’s biggest upper hand is it’s speed and stealth capability as well as the VTOL. That being said, the A-10 is a fucking tank-a gun with wings. It’s capable of flying much slower and therefore lower. Not to mention it’s appearance-so recognizable and therefor striking fear into the very core of the enemy. They very much prioritize their man on the ground and will rock your world if you fuck with that man
Until it gets shot down by a shoulder mounted surface to air missile
That is a fact! That aircraft saved my ass at least 2 times that I can think of and probably 5 times that I don’t even know about. When I was in Iraq and Afghanistan as a grunt on the ground I literally watched this beautiful beast mow through a group of buildings that we were taken fire from as if they were made from papier-mâché. Many of us owe our life to the A-10 and I would be absolutely heartbroken to see it go. 🇺🇸💪🏼
Yes, this. As a matter of fact, the F-35 can be replaced by a drone for CAS missions. Whereas, the A-10 cannot. The USAF needs to continue to diversify its CAS roles, so the A-10 needs to stay.
Bo2 is tears to my eyes
I crewed the A-10. I am still proud that that I was given the opportunity to crew a magnificent aircraft.
I went to school to be an AMT, i would lOVE to see one of these up close and get to work on them.
This video is fake and as fake as Joe biden... they're not replacing it with anything like the a10 ..utter click bait..bullshit
I gave their pilots daily weather briefings. Nicest gentlemen you would ever meet, very professional.
Thank you for your service. Amazing aircraft, hog warts and all !
I'm From Great Britain, the A10, for me, is one of the best aircraft going. So glad America has kept it and upgraded it 😊
When I was in the Army, my friend and neighbor, was an A-10 mechanic. He gave me an up close and personal tour one time. He explained that the engines are designed to eject small arms rounds and small fragments before they get to the internals. Even slow, the minimal profile is difficult to hit. If it does get hit, I'm not sure it cares. He saw (and I saw the pictures) A-10s nearly shot in half return to base. Enemy soldiers that did attempt to shoot one down, were pretty much just giving away the location of the next strafing run. It's a tough aircraft that has no equal in its designed role, and deserves continued service.
There's a legend that when the Air Force wanted to get rid of A 10, the Marines had one question. Where do we put the tailhook?
The A-10 works really well against insurgencies or nations with extremely little in the ways of AA capabilities. During the Gulf war the A-10 had to be pulled back from the front lines because they started getting shot down, and the F-16 took over their job against the Republican Guard whilst the A-10 were re-assigned to less "dangerous" areas. And when it came to taking out tanks, they generally did it witch Maverick missiles and not their gun, because their gun can't really penetrate modern mbts. So when fighting a military which is fairly well armed, the A-10 would just not be worth it.
As for being able to "take" damage. The A-10 is 'easily' shot down by a rocket, but can survive quite a few rounds of conventional AA. However you don't really want any planes to take that damage. Because that plane is now out of the rotation, and have to wait hours/days/weeks/etc. until it can fly again. You want the planes in the air harrassing the enemy, not on the ground being fixed. Which is why they want to replace it, because its main job originally was to destroy tanks. Which it does with rockets, which any planes can fire and from safer positions. But as for providing really close air support with its gun, its usefulness there is against generally poorly armed irregular forces.
@@Fung15 how many rounds of 30 mm can you buy for 1 missile?
@@Fung15 such as the Russian army fighting in ukraine??
This is the closest we will ever see to a flying tank
As a former Marine, there is no aircraft that is more appreciated than the Warthog for Air to ground support!! Period!! So glad they are updating this aircraft for future missions. This aircraft dominates in the area it was designed for, close ground support!
No such thing as a "Former" Marine. 😉
As a former Paratrooper 11-Bravo Infantryman...I concur.
@@ToddHoferyes! You are right about that, one is a Marine you'll be a Marine for life.
As long as it has the same linger time over target and mission capable ordinance ability as its namesake, I'm all for it. If the Air Force doesn't want it, the Army has already said it will take it, the airframes, men, support systems and close support mission to protect our ground troops. The Air Force only pointed to the 1948 Key West Agreement after they also saw the proposed budget cuts by Congress, they acquiesced to continue flying these airframes.
@@ToddHofer you know what I mean, got me on a technicality good for you
The A10. Having her come in over head was a game changer for us Army people… She has earned her wings and a soft spot in our hearts
Amen brother love to hear her bbbrrrrrttt!!
AO
Brrt ! And its over
The A-10 Warthog is a perfect example of an apex weapon system that everyone wants to replace because of politics, career ambition, money and ego.
It is one of the few platforms that has become MORE effective as the nature of conflict has evolved. Its highly robust, incredibly reliable AND cheap. Not only that, but because nearly every pilot comes home, you have a cadre of pilots that are masters of their craft. When REAL war against an equal foe happens, that will mean more than it does now... mark my words.
If the A-10 Warthog has one fault it is this ..... its basically embarrassing all the people who are trying to get kickbacks from aviation and military firms who are trying to market its replacement (a replacement that nobody asked for and nobody needs.)
The A-10 is godly and anyone trying replace it needs to check their headspace. It works brilliantly, it has incredibly low losses, its easy to deploy.
If any A-10 pilot reads this... thank you for your excellent service.
Spot on! It IS the soldier on the ground's best friend when it counts the most!
The second fault is a track record of blue on blue
Didn’t a a-10 pilot strafe a British convoy because he thought it was the enemy?
If they give it a system that isn’t a pair of binoculars for the pilot it would be perfect
The A-10 is in no way cheap and is limited by its initial production runs .. the ARES Mudfighter program was designed to create a low-cost and engineering solution to the shortcomings of the A-10
ua-cam.com/video/zG9LlHcX8lg/v-deo.html
It has to be mentioned that the USAF have lost more A10s than any other plane and it is responsible for more Friendly and civilian deaths than any other current plane.
@@jamesjross Thank you for these comments gents.
I do like the F-35; but I never believed the claim that it could replace the A-10; that, to me, was pure marketing hogwash. Glad for the upgrade.
L
@@ElmerGLue due you know why the a10 is so fear and has stayed around for so long? Because it's like a freakin honey badger. It takes a hell of a beating completing its mission and still make it back home. Even when missing an engine or part of wing. The guys on the ground love the a10
@@ElmerGLue You are ahead of the curve. It's going the way of robotics; but present robotics are not a replacement for a pilot. At best, present vision systems can recognize a class of vehicle, for example, but they consume too much power to be mounted on a weapon, and they don't have the intelligence to form a mental picture of a situation and modify the mission accordingly. All they can do is go to coordinates X and Y, recognize this type of target and attack it. By contrast, the A-10 is a low flying plane that allows the pilot the close-up view and the reaction time to make decisions adapted to the circumstances. I can see AI and robotics replacing bombers and strike craft at first; interceptors second; but ground support LOOONG after. We're nowhere near there. The A-10's will be THE LAST role to be replaced by robotic craft.
@@ElmerGLue They're a good addition to the toy box but they don't replace a piloted aircraft because the vast majority of drones aren't armed. Flying a drone is not the same as flying the plane. You don't have a feel for the aircraft and the view from the moniter is comparable to the pilot looking through a straw. The situational awareness is severely limited.
P.S. You don't fight wars with what's on the drawing board. You fight with what you have. They make EMP handguns so they already have a "off the shelf tech" to counter drones or a drone swarm. The reason we don't use EMP guns currently is because they're too indiscriminate. The effected area is too broad. If the target is a drone swarm that wide beam of effect suddenly becomes a asset.
@@ElmerGLue if AI was the way to go and we had all we needed the F35 and the F16ex would be AI operated... instead they both offer a pilot plus AI assistant mode... because AI cannot keep up with a true human pilot... please do some research...
Having the A-10 taking care of the enemy while on the ground with my Marines and Sailors was a divine blessing, saving the life of all of us. The reality is that close air support is utmost integral part for the success of many missions, especially in the early stages of the war. This is an essential asset that no salty, combat ridden or experienced infantry commander would like to be without.
McCain was priceless in his defense of the A-10. The Brass always wants the shiny object.
Saved my old Ass love that Wart hog
I don’t believe there will be a Stealthy A-10, my opinion , take it for what it’s worth it it would be nice for an upgraded version but Fairchild has been defunct for years. The A-10 as well as the AC-130 has saved countless lives
Boing is making the new wings, so there’s no reason why they can’t make the whole A10!
Four old generation Warthogs would have destroyed the 40 mile long Russian convoy heading into Ukkraine never mind the updated version, nice upload kind regards from England and Glory for Ukraine.
It would have, assuming the convoy had no air defenses. Russian knows they can’t beat the US in an air battle, so they’ve invested in perhaps the most advanced anti air defense systems on the planet.
@@blackfalcon1324 f35 can easily dodge any anti air defense system at this time.
@@inviertecontom7742 Yeah, just not the a10
Honestly, that's a bit of a bold statement. 4 A10's couldn't possibly carry enough munitions to disable a 40 mile long convoy.
@@gavincleland9010 Over a period of a couple days they sure could. Hit em in the front, hit em in the back then hit em down the middle. RTB as many times as needed
Out of five A-10 upgrade videos I went through, this is the only one that got to the point, stayed on point, and was actually worth watching.
I am retired Army and while on active duty I witnessed first hand the devastation of an A10 strike that was in conjunction with companies/battalions of Kiowa and Apaches. The most destructive events of my life and with all the firepower and coordination of moving parts, it was like a beautiful ballet. Needs to be seen and heard to be believed. 😉
The A10 is a unique aircraft that is responsible for saving the lives of hundreds if not thousands of ground troops since Vietnam.
A-10 for close ground support, F-35 for close air support of the A-10, and the F-22 flying air dominance cover.
That called a JAAT. Controlled one of those. Nothing survives.
A-10 Warthog Hands Down. A soldier’s best friend!
The Warthog is to me the most amazing aircraft. Less expensive and longivity makes this one great plane. I am happy that we will continue to use it.
That's why when it comes to military flight simulators like the *Ace Combat* franchise the A-10 Warthog is my go-to attack plane for air to ground sorties. There can be like 3 futuristic concept attack planes with superior air to ground capabilities and I'll still select the Warthog just for the BBRRRRRRTT.
@@theonewhowokeup9987 is it on Playstore ?
Of all things I am most impressed with the Americans for their unbelievably creative acronyms. Just the best.
They've been trying to get rid of the A10 for a long time but every time there's a conflict it proves it's self to unreplaceable
@Lazys The Dank Engineer Time and a place for everything. If the bad guys have anti aircraft missiles, anything with wings is at risk if it is within the strike envelope.
Found the Lockheed Sales rep.
As an Infantry Veteran the A 10 will forever hold a special place in my heart ❤ !
Only the A-10 can perform a slow low altitude close air support role and with the Pave Penny laser detector system it can lock on to targets being lased and fire precision laser guided weapons. The F-35 is a great multi roll aircraft but no aircraft can match the A-10's specific close air ground support role. Just ask the guys on the ground.
The A-10 has also been responsible for more friendly fire incidents while doing this than any other modern American aircraft
@@lordbrain8867 true, but in the old days of really OLD Avionics and No Really sure way to ID Friend from Foe, with all the Modernisation mentioned in this Video it's a completely *Different Story*
XD
GreeTs and G0D Bless you all †
Civilian from the peanut gallery, my guess is that it’s some helicopter that finally actually replaces the A-10 role…
@@adarret
😅 lets HOPE that doesn't happen, because Helicopters are comparatively SITTING DUCKS to Stinger Like Missiles when compared to the A-10's Maneuverability/Speed, Armor and Countermeasures
@@benygh911, the thing is that slow jets that can loiter are a pain to design, eventually they’ll design a V-22 descendant, a helicopter/rotor craft that can hover and maneuver like a helicopter yet also be able to go fast like a jet, my guess is that they’ll keep the A-10 flying till then or till Manpads are SO common, like rifle common, that the A-10 can’t really fly and is a sitting target…
During Desert Shield / Desert Storm I was a member of the Reconnaissance for Taskforce Papa Bear. Part of our orders were to spot enemy targets and call in Airstrikes, we had on call air every 5-minutes if we needed it. The A-10 Warthog and pilots flying them saved our asses many times, and decimated enemy targets with ease.
I was a a-10 crew chief for 25 years and since retiring miss it so much. I was even able to train with the f-35 when it first came out and the a-10 is so much more suited to close air support Both air craft have great value but the a-10 cant be matched for what it does.
Thank you for your service!!
@@MichaelRei99 so many people say thank you for your service. i do appreciate it but for most It has been my honor to serve this great country .
the one thing the a-10 can't do is recruit fighter pilots!
@@josephdominick477 what a humbling and honorable thing to say... thanks for doing a great job.
A-10 for close ground support, F-35 for close air support of the A-10, and the F-22 flying air dominance cover.
The A-10, is too good at what it does, to proven to be a very good aircraft. It is one of very few designs from the 4th gen that is more than worth the money to upgrade to keep around for another 25 years.
Like I stated above, passed the A-10, F-35, F-22 - what other aircraft would ever be required. Ok B-52 still handy - but what situation in todays wars could not be handled extremely effectively by either the A-10, F-35 or F-22? Hell the F-22 and F-35 make the F-1117 and B2 pointless.
So glad to see the Warthog will remain in our arsenal. It is such a unique, necessary, and very effective design to support our ground troops. There is no way an F35 could do what the A10 does so well.
The new,improved, upgraded A10 may be an immense improvement over the original Warthog, but will probably never be as revered, respected, relied upon or loved like the original one.
They've added new wings, upgraded electronics and weapons but the close ground support attack aircraft will be hard to top.
They say that on the battlefield, if you hear the Warthog's main gun firing, you weren't the target.
You got THAT Right About The WartHog & the enemies!😉
God Bless..God's Speed...
Stay Frosty Brothers &
Sisters...
F35 can go suck lemons!
A10 All The Way...and
Upgraded too? Common Air Force..
Quit Humiliating We Who Wear The Name...
WartHog All The Way..
Thank You!
God Bless..God's Speed...
Stay Frosty Brothers &
Sisters
5:5 Wheels Up
A10 WARTHOG..PERIOD🚁🐕
🇺🇲🦅🇺🇲🥇
At least they didn't kill her. Nice to know she'll be there
"They" are correct...
My Cavalry unit participated in testing of the A-10 thermal imaging sight that allowed the pilot to detect targets in low visibility, fog, night, etc. Our tanks were not allowed to run our crew heaters in the freezing German winter to test the systems ability to detect us from engine compartment heat alone. Just prior to flyover we'd fire blank 105mm rounds and the aircraft would actually detect heat from the guntube. Warsaw Pact tanks did not have crew heaters and any tank commander that ran their heater would result in the entire tank to glow on the pilots screen. No one did. We ran these scenarios with different formations for 30 days freezing our b*lls off. Tests were successful and the Air Force threw us a party at Ramstein AFB. That same TTS system was later adapted and installed in M-60A3 tanks. Hard to believe that was almost 50 years ago.
The A-10 is the best air- to- ground platform in today's skies ! Amazing ground attack aircraft, with great survivability !
Thank God the politicians did something useful for once.
What about the AC-130 Spectre gunships?
@@moa3008 It's has a great amount of firepower but the A-10 is more accurate and better at killing armor.
@@nathanshearer30 The A-10 is highly inaccurate with its gun and the gun hasn't been able to punch armor in a vehicle made after the 70's
@@marw9541 I won't argue the A-10 needs to be upgraded (In progress) but flight speed matters when trying to stay engaged.
Many years ago I served in marine tanks and during a training operation I poped up over a hill and came face to face with a A-10. I can tell you that is one scary sight and it made me realize how awesome that aircraft is for ground support
A splendid plane. I'm glad the US was clever enough to improve it instead of dumping it. Besides, I believe it's significantly cheaper than the F-35.
Cheaper doesn't always mean better this proves it as the A10 was a propaganda machine for both sides it kills civilians faster than the American soldiers and kills its own soldiers faster than the enemy planes
ANYTHING WOULD BE!!
You're absolutely Right.
@@drewandfrank the f22 more expensive
The A10 has brought home our service personnel. Lifesaving equipment, IMO.
The A-10 reminds me of a hawk if you’ve ever seen a hawk flying high up and circling in wide circles that’s basically what the A10 does over the battlefield circles picking out targets then goes in for the kill
A-10 and it's recognizable sound makes enemies poop their pants !
I think you'd be a fool to get rid
Of the A10 it's the Only thing that will put a smile on a Soldiers face in the middle of Battle!
You never show the new upgraded look only the old A-10! SAD!
My dad started flying F-4’s back in the day. He then got moved up to the F-15. Latter he got moved over to the A-10 and fell in love with it.
Sounds like you moved around a bit. What's your resume look like? My dad was stationed at Barksdale (Shreveport), Osan (Korea), Edwards (Lancaster), and finally Elmendorf (Anchorage) before it was designated JBER (Elmendorf/Richardson).
@@t-jh4236 born Tripler AMC when dad was flying 15’s then transferred to Yokota in Japan. Lived there for most of my life with short stints all over Asia. Then when I was 16 back to Hawaii. Then after my little brothers graduation Myrtle Beach South Carolina.
@@t-jh4236 born Tripler AMC when dad was flying 15’s then transferred to Yokota in Japan. Lived there for most of my life with short stints all over Asia. Then when I was 16 back to Hawaii. Then after my little brothers graduation Myrtle Beach South Carolina.
Respect for your dad from Croatia❤
The brrt bird is a living legend. No other aircraft in the world instills fear and panic for enemies that see it. Wanting to retire the a10 is borderline treasonous in my opinion.
5:52 "... sometimes it is equipped with a titanium bathtub ... ". Sometimes? What ... you think they remove the entire titanium armour package when they feel like they don't need it? It's not a flak vest. It's a permanent part of each A-10.
I've always viewed the A-10 as an air tank. Designed for both ground support as well as supply a distraction to the enemy, especially since it's tough to hide in the air. it's built for it's role perfectly and every expansion and upgrade is meant to make it better in it's dedicated role
Pretty much this. The Air Force's concerns over the A-10s survivability stems from the fact that nearly all American jets in service make use of stealth characteristics as the primary form of defense. But when the jet eventually gets hit, that hit will almost always result in the loss of the airframe. Meanwhile, the A-10 uses armor as its primary means of survival. The same hit that would inevitably down the F-35 would be shrugged off by the A-10, and it'd continue flying in defiance.
@@azurblueknights Isn't the A-10 an army air vehicle? Why is the air force in charge of it?
@crazyjr It's not an army air vehicle. It still falls under the purview of the Air Force, like a vast majority of the combat jets the United States Military uses. In fact, when they were initially talking about retiring the A-10, the army offered to buy it off the Air Force, but the USAF absolutely refused. I can only speculate as to why, but if I had to guess, the USAF didn't want to let the army use an aircraft with such a well known legacy, despite the fact that the USAF was wanting to retire the A-10 to free up budget for their over-engineered F-35 that had already sucks up money equal to the cost of *eight* A-10s. Seriously. An A-10 costs about 10 million per machine. A F-35? Almost $80 million. And that was pre-pandemic numbers.
@@azurblueknights, Ok I assumed the A in A-10 meant army support, Thank you for the clarification
They are two different platforms. Prior to Desert Storm the Airforce hated the A-10 and wanted to replace it. Because they had so many and they were not very old the Airforce wanted to give them to the Army. They wanted Infantry officers (O2-O4) to take over the AC. During Desert Storm the AC was the hero of the day and the Airforce dropped the idea of giving them away.
There's a catch. USAF wants to give the A10 to Army. However, USAF does not want to give the sustainment budget money for the A10 to Army, nor does USAF want to compromise on the Key West Treaty and allow Army to fly fixed wing platforms in general - more budget money to lose.
You can always count on the Air Farce to come up with a bad idea and then promote it heavily. The military really needs a firm civilian oversight system, instead of the incredibly stupid Congress.
The Taliban were Very Afraid of the A-10. The AC-130 was another Widow Maker.
A-10 is the shit. I would prefer it to have my 6 any time anywhere!!
I owe my life to the A-10's on several occasion. I love this plane.
...love the sound of "brrrrrrt" in the morning, it sounds "victory"!
I just wish they would stop the guy using a chainsaw so I can hear him talk.
As much as I appreciate the A-10 Warthog, I do NOT appreciate the click-bait picture.
Anyone who has fought over seas knows exactly how necessary the a10 is! It doesn’t have to prove anything it already has! I know I’m far from the only one who can say that hand of god in the sky saved my life on many occasions!!
If you have ever seen the A10s demonstration of what it can do to ground targets you have a very good idea how necessary it is. My dad was in the Air Force for 30 years and I got a behind the scenes demonstration of cannon firing a dry run. In person and up close is was frightening. Couldn't imagine being shot at with that thing. Glad it's on our side.
Is the tidbit about US ground troops having to take cover when they call one in accurate?
Would it be right to say it is a risky weapon. But when it kills the group of bad guys that were suppressing you, it’s a gamble that your willing to take?
Keep the A-10 flying. A Desert Storm Vet. . . They saved my life. 🇺🇲
Test the Super A-10 Warthog in Ukraine. They have tanks lining up to see how it performs.
too busy giving them to israel so they can sell them to Pakistan
I agree. Give Zelensky at least 10. But Biden, our illegal, corrupt, braindead, traitor president is also an utter COWARD
OK but you can't replace the psychological terror that 4000 rounds per minute of armor piercing 30mm terror-filled BRRRRRRT provides.
I was rooting for the A-10 in the competition. It is an agile tank killer with new wings and updated Cockpit Suite.
It would be a unbelievable weapon in Ukraine today and would send the Russians packing. The F-35 is an incredible 5th generation fighter that provide air to ground capability. The A-10 is proven with years of service and my choice.
Most of the benefits of the A-10C would be lost due to the need to fly extremely low, and frankly the look down capability of Russian IADS would still destroy it. Russian IADS is relatively complete and there is no possibility of flight - of any model of aircraft.
Wouldn't it make more sense for the two, A-10 and F-35, work well together? The F-35 would take out or neutralize the SAM systems then the A-10 could destroy the softer targets. I'm no air force expert but it seems like they would have a complimentary relationship because they're so different but essential.
@@cavaleermountaineer3839 F-35 would be detected by Russia. In Iraq, AGM-88 had an 18% success rate against S-75 Dvina. Against modern Russian IADS it's very, very unlikely to leak through.
the f-35 is the brains, the a-10 is the missile truck. or ammo truck. whatever
AO
The A-10 is the true King of Ground Support.
It is time to re-open the A-10 assembly line.
On the double
All these videos show a "new concept A10".... Ok, let's do it! Time is now! It's proven it's need. As long as there's a battlefield there's need for A10s.
The traitor Biden will not do it.
@ They are to busy with gender studies and watching white patriotic men's comments. Like this one.
Fairchild is out of business. Northrop is supporting the A10 now
Are you kidding? Give me an A-10 Warthog anytime on the battlefield! I was stationed in Germany's Frankfurt / Wurzburg area and you could hear that Hog's "flight" signature even around all that greenery. It sounded like an approaching 5/10 K generators coming at Ya. Wait that's because it's still far away until that sound of death singing like a Gatling gun! I'm so surprised that they are still in the inventory. We all loved those planes. Just keep on upgrading 6, 7, 8 ... till kingdom come! We felt safe cause they flew low at tree height! Just keep them around for those actual special runs that only they can accomplish. I'm an old soldier at the age of 64. Can I get a witness?
A10 Warthog - a real warrior!
The. A 10 will be around for a long time, just like the B 52.
Keep the A10 it's really a well built platform and it's really not a old aircraft when you compared it to the B52 bomber. Both of these aircraft have proven its self time and time again.
My brother worked on the wing of this plane back in 1973 for Fairchild Republic Corporation in Amityville New York and it's truly a testament of how well this plane was built that it still fly's today better then ever. I'm really glad that it finally got some of the well deserved Avionic upgrades which should make it even more deadly and effective in today's combat environment. Please Keep the Magnificent A10!
As a crew chief on the A model, I was told that a basic CAS maneuver was the Figure Eight. The plane would dive firing on a target, recover, come around, renew the attack, recover and renew. The A-10 was said to put more fire on a target in less time than anything but a Spectre gunship.
Per round, the Spectre costs at least four times as much. And it is designed for tactics very different from those in the A-10 portfolio.
Here are some old numbers, off the cuff. Ten thousand pounds of JP-4, $1600. One thousand rounds of 30mm depleted uranium, classified. True battlefield superiority, priceless.
It is the 800bl gorilla in the sky. The line from blazing saddles comes to mind when Hugo comes to town ."No no don't shoot him, you'll just make him mad" and then your find out you brought a gun to a cannon fight! U know it is a fighter aircraft but hearing from the people that it has protected and watched over in battle i could easily picture a vicious warrior dragon throwing fire at everything that even looks at us gold that it protects! I know 3 guys that owe their lives to those air crews pilots and aircraft!
Thank you! It was nice to see my old aircraft 992 in the video
Just let the Army have the A-10. They don't need an entire aviation department just the A-10.
Obviously, you have little knowledge of what the ARMY needs....
Airforce has A10
The Army already has an aviation branch. They just do not fly fixed wing aircraft.
Don't even have an Army. Just the A-10.
@@chrisholder4978 of the day iîí to
Great video. Thank you.
The A-10 was designed to be a long loitering very Close Air Support, or CAS aircraft, also excels at escort/support CSAR helicopters. Which is to assist infantry with more than a flyby airstrke or 2. The F-35 and A-10 are both designed for missions where the other aircraft does not belong. Can you imagine an F35 doing multiple strafing runs at or below 500ft or less on a treeline, or supporting helicopters to recover wounded, and downed pilots. Or an A-10 at or above 10kft over heavily radar, and fighter contested airspace, dropping precision guided munitions on an early warning radar, or command vehicle. Use the tool for its purpose, and let it do it's job, not kinda other tools jobs. Would you use a hack saw to drive a nail, or a claw hammer to cut metal pipe?
@Lazys The Dank Engineer Their is also psychological value to having air support visible overhead, and watching a radar return magically appear or disappear that is active and aggressive. Often the number of kills is not as important as the location and circumstances of those kills. Ask FAC's( Forward Air Controller/ CCT) , and PJ'S- Air Force Para-rescuemen. They are professionals in calling in Danger close CAS, which aircraft type is their preference. I think its more like 10pd sledge hammer, and a finishing hammer. Both can do the same job, but it isn't necessarily the best tool for the job. Similar to this discussion we both agree the A10 and F35 are good attack aircraft, but may have differences in the missions assigned. Hope you have a great day.
So those convoys in the Ukraine, didn't need strafing,nor close air attention??? Are there enough 35s to obtain air superiority? Well use them for the dogfighting,air king, and the tank buster to bust tanks...
Simple.. an f35 could never slow down enough to do the 10s job,and loiter
A A-10 is to tanks what a P-9 is to submarines. Low, slow and on target.
Finding those AA things are what infantry is for. Artillery response when in range. Or drops from 35,000 feet and higher are next.
The A-10 is for clean up
The F-35 isn't even that good at achieving air superiority. I'm not saying it's bad (though it took an ungodly amount of money to make it "not bad"), but it's still outclassed by the older F-22. The only reason it has any advantage in the sky is its combat suite.
No sir. No I cannot.
The A -10 is a beast and the prettiest Warthog ever. Wish I was flying that baby for sure - - - >>>
It's simple, if the F-22s and especially the F-35s do their jobs (gain and maintain air gain and maintain ground support operations).
The military has tried to create multi-purpose systems (like the F-35), but keep forgetting they can't be the "best" at everything so make them the best at some things and have others the best at a few or one thing and evolve them to always be the "BEST".
It is good at its job for sure. They should keep it and the spooky on hand in my opinion
US MILITARY PERSONNEL DEFENSE NEVER GIVE UP NEVER, U KEEP FIGHTING UNTIL YOU HAVE NO FIGHT IN U NEVER GIVE UP ON USA, KEEP GOING DO U UNDERSTAND
The A10 has been my favorite plane ever built since i discovered it! It is the in your face brutal armored flying gun! Everything on it is built off the largest gun ever put in the sky.! The gun is so powerful in early development the problem of the gun causing the plane to stall because it was stronger than the engine had to be ironed out till keep it from causing the aircraft to stall ! I don't remember exactly what the fix was but that is to this day a gun that no tank can survive a signal hit from. And the aircraft has has 2 hydraulic backup systems and can still be flown with all electronics gone, and because the firing barrel of the cannon is in the absolute center if the aircraft the pilot can point the A10 at the target and fire the cannon with all electronics fine and still destroy targets as long as it can be seen visibly! Plus the aircraft can still fly with about 50% of it missing for whatever reason it is my choice here and always ! What is tuffer than nails it is the A 10 ! If i had to fly into hell i would put my money on the A10 to get me there and there is a dam good odds on taking out the devil and getting me back as well!
you really think people came here to find out what Tom's favorite plane is then herar you rant about it? Get over yourself this isn't your channel we truly couldn't care any less
@@slowery43 no they come here so they can be put in there place by" the all mighty hoever you are". That is why!
Every modern tank made after the 70's can survive a hit from the gun...the A-10 only gets tank kills from missiles. Even on old model T-72's it would be exclusively luck on decommissioning the tank for more than a day
@@marw9541 You have a valid point . The tank still has a place on the field and it is still a threat in combat . But to my knowledge there isnt another aircb
raft that is as durable and even though it can be hit and hurt the aircraft can protect the pilot and is purpouse built to take ground fire and can still fly with astonishing amounts of the plane missing. With two backup systems for everything it can still operate and be flown with all electrical systems gone. Without the cannon it is going to take a lot of abuse and continue the support of those on the ground. Even flying low and giving visual assistance with all ammo spent A10 piolits take fire over and over and save lives on the ground!!
@@tomstevens6833 Yes the tank is still important on the field and yes the A-10 can take quite a bit of small arms fire, but this is not a typical engagement in modern war against symmetrical (or at least more symmetrical than the Taliban) opponents. Ground fire is not important when you are outside the effective range, as well as the ability to launch over the horizon missile attacks. Also the A-10 pilots have been shown to horribly misidentify targets and fire on friendly columns of light armoured infantry vehicles, so having a man with eyes in the sky when we have AWAX systems and ground radar, the A-10 will not be able to keep up with modern information systems that share data to give one the newest edge in warfare.
By the way, this isn't me telling you to hate the A-10. It's a fun plane, and tempered opinions of it don't detract from your love for the aircraft. I personally really love the F-15 even though I know the F-15EX will be its last hoorah, but I wouldn't ever want to misunderstand the abilities of one of my favorite aircraft. Your favorite plane doesn't need to be the best, so I hope it doesn't sound like I'm just being a massive buzzkill. I'm simultaneously having this argument with someone else who is far more aggressive so I feel like maybe I might have been a little too harsh here.
The A-10 Warthog is my favorite plane. I know people think I'm crazy, but I think they're beautiful planes
The Generals hated the Warthog because it was effective and didn't cost a lot. They love the F-35 since it costs a ton and can barely fly.
The a 10 is battle tested! We need both.
My vote is for the A10.
The A-10 is not desired because it's old, slow, and does the job very well. The USAF wants the new shiney now.
The image showing the video doesn't show anywhere in the video...😢
I used to live near Ft Leonard Wood Army base. My dad was an old pilot for fixed wing on the Mekong Delta in Vietnam. Because of this, the A-10's would rock their wings for us if they could see us. They could often go below the tree line on our our farm. We loved when they would slow down and then pull up. Both of those engines would pull so much air that that they warped light on both ends. I used to call them " testicle jets". That is what they look like with those two engines mounted to the back. They used to blow us around sometimes. They stopped sometime in the 80's???
I also relish a picture from when I was tow headed--sitting in an A-10. My dad didn't fly them. The Army must always have aviation!!!
If the Air Force no longer wants them, give them to the Marines.
Brilliant!!!
Nothing is as powerful in ground attack as the a 10. Never shall it be replaced!
I remember when I was in the Air Force and got to watch a video about the different planes in operation, the first time I saw the A-10 it was immediately my favorite warplane, and still is. That was in the late 1980s.
Very fortunate as a child in the '70's & 80's to spend holidays on my late Grandfather's farm in Suffolk which was about 10 miles away from the twin-bases of RAF Woodbridge and Bentwaters where A-10s were stationed (prior was the F4 and what a beast that was to see fly low and fast over the fields!). Can still hear the unique whine of those A-10 engines and loved watching them do their practice manoeuvres over the Deben estuary. I also have an A-10 round which I got from the Farnborough Air Show in the mid'70s - to think 4,200 of these come out of that gun in a minute is mind-blowing.
The payload of the A-10 Alone is enough to root for it and then you add the reputation it has for being the tank of the sky! A-10 hands down!!!
That payloadnowcan send missiles to kill SU 35's and 57's without having to stay on point. Those long distance missiles can end those jets and not be bothered. The A10C is like Hercules tough!!
I'm an ex-matelot. I was lucky enough to be able to talk to one of the pilots of the old A-10 at an air show. He showed me over the plane, and about his time in combat. From what he told me, and looking at the capabilities of it, don't bump into it on a bad day.
Sounds to me like the Air Force don't want to get rid of the warthogs. And you got to admit it is one of the best slow go close air to ground combat plane ever built. And if you ask the troops on the ground which plane they like the best I'm pretty sure they going to say the a-10. That 18 is one awesome badass plane. I wish I had the money to buy me one. I like to have it just to go out and cruise around on. You know it have to be fun.
A-10 warthog super A-10 thunderbolt 2 awesome. 😀👍🇺🇸
It's not the air force but old men in congress as well as the companies supplying the upgrade that want to keep the A-10, the actual individuals in charge do not want it around. It has the most blue on blue kills of any American aircraft to date
The Warthog and the Apache helicopter are two of the best ground support aircraft in the US military. The cotton picking bureaucrats can't leave well enough alone. Many of them are probably bought off and would have no problem trying to end either one of these amazing programs. BTW, the Apache is also amazingly ballistically tolerant and can take a heck of a beating and remain flying. Two great weapons for sure.
I’ve not served in any of our military forces. I’m sure this has been talked about. I’ve just not come across it yet.
Too me, having both these incredible fighter jets. Supporting each other. Both are amazing at protecting troops. Up close and from a distance. Thank you to those that serve. 🙏🏻
The enemy wants A-10 out of action
As a soldier that had his as saved by the A10, will choose it all day long. It is the infantry soldiers best friend.
Funny how those cool new air intakes to the engines never got mentioned.
I was looking for the aircraft that caused me to click on this video. I didn't see or any mention of it. It looked more like an A-14. Is this a re-occurring theme of these type of videos?
@@James_Musnicki probably. They put out a video of the updated super-raptor f-22, but seem to have forgotten that they don't and can't even make the old one anymore.
America had a gun.
America decided gun should fly.
America made a scary plane.
We always forget that a-10 take multiple precision guide hits and F-22 and F-35 can’t. Moreover, A-10 survival is flawless where as 1 f-22 and several f-35 were lost.
Videos like this remind me of how truly revolutionary the USAF Boyd Fighter Mafia was in the '70s. They drop kicked the USAF Brass that was retarding effective platforms and forced through the F15, F16, and A10, providing effective high/low air superiority and CAS for 50 years. USAF Brass have resented them ever since. Even the loser in the F16 fly-off, the YF17, was evolved into the USN's F18. Amazing quality delivered.
If it was a fighter it'd start with an F, it starts with an A, for Attack (Or Ground Attack/ CAS).
Historically the Fighter Jet side of the Air Force (Aka command) doesn't want the purpose built A10, they want to use whatever fighter they have and give it the role(aka the funding). This is why the WW2 Skyraider wound up as one of the best CAS planes in Vietnam.
At one point the USAF, in trying to decline the project that would become the a-10, tried to pass on the CAS role all together, but the marines jumped up and put forth a proposal to take over the role (And all the funding that went with it) The USAF changed course instantly reclaiming the role, but they still don't' really want it, just the budget it brings. (thus the attempt to move the funding to the f-35).
It's crazy how much that plane fits the Marines. I would drop everything I'm doing to have a chance at flying that thing. Such a cool plane and being that close to the fight would be unreal.
@@cwr8618 I went through Marine OCS hoping to fly the F-18, Harriet or Bronco, but I always thought this would be perfect for the Marines mission and a hoot to fly.
Let's blow the world up starting with Putin house
Getting to see the A-10 in flight I think I was more excited then kids are on Christmas. As a soldier I can relate how one might feel that nothing's impossible when you have an A-10 flying over you. The A-10 even had a cameo appearance in the show Seal Team, which my wife and I watch. She thought it was funny how when the scene began I suddenly sat up and said OMG that's an A-10 Warthog, and began to tell my wife, oh they're in trouble now(referring to the enemy), couldn't even finish the sentence before the A-10 cleared them all out.
The Army's battlefield should be changed to battlebubble, and the A-10 moved to the Army along with pilots of course. The Air Force would continue to be tasked with air superiority and elimination of air defenses prior to the Army bringing their battlebubble to bear.
The a 10 is so good for what it was designed for it can’t get replaced
If I had 20/20 vision, I wanted to fly the Hog! I was obsessed with that plane, especially after witnessing low fly-overs. It would fly so low that they would pop over the treetops and be flying away before you knew they were coming! I liked the "Thunder and Lightning" idea, with the Thunderbolt and Lightning flying together in unison.
Yeah the eyesight was the only thing holding you back. Lol.
@@t-jh4236 don't hate. We are all fans of the A10.
Bless the Fly Boys. They have saved a lot of our ground troops. Thank You.
There's a reason why the Warthog has a second nickname with pilots, it's called the "Flying Bathtub". Virtually bulletproof cockpit, multiple redundancies in controls and tough as nails engines. It's been designed to not only survive small arms fire at close range, the Warthog flys slow enough to take out enemy ground positions that fire on it.
F35 is a stealth fighter / bomber. Probably why it doesn't have a Vulcan Cannon on it's nose or air to ground rockets in it's bays.
So only the 35B and 35C lack the gun. The 35A actually has a 25mm gau-22.
Sometimes you have a perfectly designed tool that only gets better with technology. You'll never change the saw, screwdriver, knife, wrench, hammer, keyboard, pipes, roads, etc etc. The basic form is what it is. We've improved those tools, but until we reach a level of such knowledge that completely changes our understanding of forms, it's simply a perfect aircraft design for it's job
This is what they need in Ukraine !!
I fell in love with the Warthog when I did a walkaround on the tarmac at a NAS Miramar air show 40 years ago.
I always thought that the A10 was far superior for ground support. It is airy. It can sneak up on the enemy. Plus the titanium used can with stand ground fire. I never have been in the military, but keep up on new developments.
Then you know USAF have lost more A10s than any other plane and it is responsible for more Friendly and civilian deaths than any other current plane.
those numbers cannot be verified on any military records!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!@@jamesjross The simple answer is the USAF wants the money, from the A10 budget and getting rid of it opens ups the check book!!
God bless all you men and women who served and kept these things running😊
Ukraine could use some A-10's.
Totally agree. They are asking for the Mig-29's but they need some of these upgraded Hogs. They could shred that convoy.
Never, never count our old friend out. Fast is not always better. Our Warthog will always have a place in conflicts. Thanks A-10.
What a great and informative video! This fighter jet is irreplaceable and should Always be part of the Air Forces' Arsenal. Long Live the A10 Warthog!
Air Force? Well the AF Generals that are trying to get away from that mission have their heads in the clouds of fighter glory and don’t comprehend the A-10 close air support mission for the 11B on receiving end of the contact in the field. They try to fantasize about the Air To Air and that the ground mission doesn’t exist, it’s just part of their fantasy! So happy that Congress is keeping them in line!
Let F-35 be at the technological edge, stealth, fast, high-flying, loaded with much missiles.
Let A10 be not so vulnerable to electronic attack, and low cost.
the A-10 is already a frightening weapon for the receiving end and its still getting an upgrade! 💯💯💯
Not to mention that the A-10 can still fly with one wing and one engine.
That’s incredible & should have been included in this comparison.
@Lazys The Dank Engineer Sure, but an A-10 that can at least fly far enough to a safe ejection point is better than an F-35 that has to eject immediately.