Good. Our ground pounders need this, especially since the A-10 appears to rolling-off line.

While helos are great, they have little station-keeping ability.

As a young soldier, I can tell you that hearing that 130 lumbering overhead was a very good feeling - almost as good as hearing a pair of A-10s inbound.

To quote Mr. O'Rourke, when referring to a young Somali observing a low flying C-130:

"His whole life he'll remember the moment that sky-blackening, air-mauling, thunder-engined steel firmament of war crossed his face. And I hope all his bellicose, fanatical, senseless, quarrel-mongering neighbors - from Tel Aviv to Khartoum, from Tripoli to Tehran - remember it too."

Ohh rah.

Wow!

Important difference between an AC-130 and an A-10:

An AC-130 is very vulnerable to ground fire so they only come out at night, and go home when the sun comes up, even if there is still work to be done.

An A-10 is fast enough and tough enough to provide air support during the day.

So far, there is no replacement for an A-10, except another A-10.

The air force was retiring the A-10 but I read recently that has been stopped and they are back in service. A good thing I think.

I will never understand military procurement. If the A-10 is still needed, why not just build new A-10's? It's not like we don't have the designs or couldn't retrofit new avionics at a very reasonable cost. Why must we always build new stuff at the cost of billions when the old stuff works?

Gosh, they're using Howitzer ammo that requires a brass case?

For years I made powder molds for caseless Howitzer ammo for Armtec. The gun goes bang and there's nothing to take out.

Dave

Good. Our ground pounders need this, especially since the A-10 appears to rolling-off line.

While helos are great, they have little station-keeping ability.

As a young soldier, I can tell you that hearing that 130 lumbering overhead was a very good feeling - almost as good as hearing a pair of A-10s inbound.

To quote Mr. O'Rourke, when referring to a young Somali:

"His whole life he'll remember the moment that sky-blackening, air-mauling, thunder-engined steel firmament of war crossed his face. And I hope all his bellicose, fanatical, senseless, quarrel-mongering neighbors - from Tel Aviv to Khartoum, from Tripoli to Tehran - remember it too."

Ohh rah.

...on the A-10--will be interesting (although disheartening really) to watch the AF Brass again go thru their mental gymnastics in their attempts to justify dropping from the active inventory the best close air support fighter ever fielded...McCain, now Chief of the Senate Armed Services Committee, of course has vowed to keep the A-10 on line at least into the near future...

...unfortunately, the most recent development in this sad saga is that AF Brass are now being scrutinized for possible investigation because of allegedly threatening AF personnel with retaliatory actions and claiming it would be "treason" if they were to speak with Congress regarding the A-10's capabilities...

Agreed. However, in context, P.J. was talking about the Palestinians that live there; not the other folks.

> If the A-10 is still needed, why not just build new A-10's?

Because they "need" (want?) the A-10 sustainment monies to fund their latest shiny-shiny (F-35).

... upon learning formed that his son had decided to fly the Warthog, three-star General Chuck Horner reportedly said "Oh, I don't think I have a son anymore; I think he died from brain damage." During the Gulf War, as part of a routine briefing, General Horner said "I take back all the bad things I have ever said about the A-10. I love them! They're saving our asses!"

exactly on the Gulf War...and, more recently in the War on Terror the AF's own JTACs--the AF personnel actually on the ground with the Infantry--have overwhelmingly voiced their support of retaining the A-10 and view it as the most effective aircraft in the AF inventory for the CAS missions...

I'm told no A-10 driver buys if there are any infantry Marines in the bar.

That's because it's not military procurement, it's political procurement.

I'm guessing that someone who bet his career on the F-35 is trying to find any way to make it seem like he didn't piss in his own hat.