Earlier this year, the Air Force announced that it was postponing plans to retire the A-10 Thunderbolt II—nicknamed the Warthog by airmen—until fiscal year 2018 when a gradual retirement process would begin, with a deadline for completion by 2021. Now, Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James told Aviation Week that the retirement of the Warthog could be delayed even further as the military continues to rely on the aircraft for close air support (CAS).
The heavily armed and armored A-10 is currently flying CAS missions to protect ground troops who are fighting battles against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria. Without a viable replacement for CAS roles, a bipartisan congressional group with public support has taken to opposing the Air Force's schedule for phasing out the A-10.
The Air Force has been trying to sunset the Warthog for years so that resources that go toward maintaining the A-10 fleet could be reallocated to modern fighter jet programs, particularly the F-35 Lightning II, which received initial operational capability (IOC) certification from the Air Force in August. USAF leaders worry that the slow, unstealthy A-10 will have trouble surviving in modern battlefields as sophisticated surface-to-air missiles become more affordable and widespread. At this point, however, at least two squadrons of 12 A-10s have been effectively flying against Islamic State militants without major incident.
The announcement that the Air Force will likely postpone retirement plans for the Warthog yet again comes at a time when the replacement program for the A-10 remains uncertain. There is a proposal within the Air Force to develop two aircraft as replacements. The "OA-X" program would purchase an off-the-shelf airframe for auxiliary support until the "AX-2" program could develop a full replacement for the Hawg—either a clean sheet design or a modified version of an existing aircraft.
There is opposition to the two-plane solution from senior leaders in Air Force, however, partially due to budget concerns. The USAF is currently drafting a requirements document for a new CAS aircraft, which should provide more information about the planned course of action to eventually replace the Warthog.
Until then, Congress is encouraging the Air Force to adopt the philosophy, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." The Warthog, developed in 1977, has been protecting United States' boots on the ground since it first saw action in Operation Desert Storm, and it looks like it will continue to do just that for some years yet.
Source: Aviation Week
Jay Bennett is the associate editor of PopularMechanics.com. He has also written for Smithsonian, Popular Science and Outside Magazine.
