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Product Type: |
Ground-Attack Close-Air-Support Aircraft |
Using Service (US): |
Air Force (USAF) |
Program Status: |
No more new aircraft will be purchased. |
Prime Contractor: |
Upgrades: The Boeing Company |
The A-10 Thunderbolt II, also known as the Warthog, is a single-seat twin-engine ground-attack close-air-support (CAS) aircraft.
The A-10 is an effective and survivable aircraft, which can be used against all ground targets, including tanks and other armored vehicles.
The A-10 is powered by two General Electric
TF34-GE-100
turbofan engines, each providing 9,065 pounds of thrust.
The A-10's wide combat radius and short takeoff and landing capability permit operations in and out of locations near the front line. Using night vision goggles, pilots can conduct missions during darkness.
The Thunderbolt can be serviced and operated from limited facilitiy bases near battle areas.
The Thunderbolt is an extremely survivable aircraft. To protect the pilot, the cockpit is protected by titanium armor up to 3.8 cm thick.
The cockpit has a large bulletproof bubble canopy, which provides excellent all-round vision.
The aircraft can survive direct hits from up to 23mm armor-piercing and high-explosive projectiles.
The self-sealing fuel cells on the A-10 are protected by internal and external foam.
Manual systems back up the hydraulic flight control systems, thus permitting pilots to fly and land even when hydraulic power is lost.
Avionics equipment on the A-10 includes multi-band communications; GPS/INS systems;
IR and electronic countermeasures against aerial and surface threats; the AN/AAS-35(V) Pave Penny laser spot tracker system;
a heads-up display for flight and weapons delivery information;
a Northrop Grumman
AN/AAQ-28(V) Litening EO/IR targeting pod; Lockheed Martin AN/AAQ-33 Sniper XR targeting pod;
a low-altitude autopilot; and a ground collision avoidance system.
The A-10 has received many upgrades over the years.
Starting in 2005, the entire A-10 fleet has been modified with precision engagement upgrades.
The upgrade program installed an improved fire control system (FCS);
electronic countermeasures (ECM); upgraded cockpit displays; the ability to deliver smart bombs; moving map display;
hands-on throttle and stick; digital stores management; AN/AAQ-28(V) Litening EO/IR targeting pod
+ AN/AAQ-33 Sniper XR advanced targeting pod integration;
situational awareness data link (SADL); variable message format (VMF); GPS-guided weapons; and upgraded DC power.
Having received the precision engagement upgrades, all aircraft now carry the A-10C designation.
The A-10 was developed by Fairchild Republic in the early 1970s. The aircraft first flew in May 1972,
and the first production A-10A was delivered to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona in October 1975.
A total of 713 aircraft have since been produced. The A-10 was delivered to the U.S. Air Force from
October 1975 to March 1984. As of May 2012 there are 343 A-10C aircraft in service
with the U.S. Air Force, Air Combat Command, the U.S. Air Force Reserve, and the Air National Guard.
The latest variant, the A-10C, achieved Initial Operational Capability (IOC) in August 2007.
The A-10C is specifically designeded to perform forward air control missions.
The A-10 Thunderbolt is equipped with a 30mm GAU-8/A Avenger seven-barreled gatling gun. The aircraft has 11 hardpoints and can carry up to 16,000 pounds of ordnance, including Mk 82/84 General Purpose Bombs, Paveway II laser-guided bombs, GBU-31/38 Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM), AGM-65 Maverick, and AIM-9 Sidewinder (AIM-9X projected) missiles. For more detail, see specifications below.
To provide close air support for ground forces by attacking armored vehicles and other ground targets.
The primary modification budgeted in FY12 is the A-10 wing replacement. The replacement wings will meet the A-10 operational requirement to extend the aircraft's service life to 16,000 hours. See FY2013 budget below for more information about the A-10 wing replacement program.
The primary modification budgeted in FY 13 is the A-10 Wing Replacement mod. The Wing Replacement program purchases replacement wings for the A-10 because the cost of sustaining A-10 wings has exceeded economic limits. The Fleet Viability Board estimated a $1.3 billion cost avoidance by replacing the thin-skin wings instead of repairing them. To increase the aircraft service life, A-10 wings must be replaced with enhanced wing assemblies. The replacement wings will be the major contribution to meet the A-10's operational service life requirement. The replacement wings will incorporate reliability and maintainability improvements to known fatigue critical locations. With these improvements, the replacement wings will not require major structural inspections for the first 10,000 hours of service life. The replacement wings will be installed as part of the O&M-funded Scheduled Structural Inspections (SSI) to the furthest extent possible. For more information, click to see the Complete FY 2013 A-10 Budget.
Source: U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), The Boeing Company,
General Electric Co., and Lockheed Martin Corp.
Updated: January 25, 2013.
By Joakim Kasper Oestergaard (www.kostergaard.com)
Boeing: A-10 Thunderbolt II
Lockheed Martin: A-10 Thunderbolt II
Northrop Grumman: A-10 Thunderbolt II
YouTube: A-10 Thunderbolt | YouTube Videos
Fact Sheet: Not Available
A-10 U.S. Defense Budget Charts: |
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Primary Function: Close air support and airborne forward air control |
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