Why the A-10 Warthog’s new maritime role could extend the life of a great aircraft — and give America badly needed littoral strike power at exactly the right moment.
From what I have read (Could Be Wrong) from day 1 the AF brass hated, loathed, despised this plane. It doesn't fly High, it doesn't fly Fast, it doesn't shoot own other planes, They Hate it. All it does is support the other branches. Grunts Love it and just as important Joe/Jane Sixpack Love It,
The A-10’s success is very much in line with the design parameters of the AK-47. The US DoD has had an almost fatal obsession with sophisticated vs effective. To the vast enrichment of US contractors and retired flag officers guiding procurements. Trump and Hegseth seem, for the first in my lifetime, to be disrupting the sophistication hollowing out of our force projection capabilities. Excelsior!
The US Navy destroyed 120 Iranian warships — and Hormuz is still closed. Two carrier strike groups, eight Aegis destroyers, and $40 billion in naval firepower couldn't reopen a six-mile shipping lane clogged with 1,500 fast boats. The answer wasn't a newer ship or a bigger missile. It was a 50-year-old Air Force jet the Pentagon wanted to throw away.
The A-10 Warthog was never designed for naval warfare. It was built to kill Soviet tanks on the plains of Europe. But its GAU-8 cannon, low-speed maneuverability, and titanium-armored cockpit turned out to be the exact engineering solution for a problem the Navy's blue-water arsenal was never built to handle — cheap, fast, swarming targets in a confined corridor. This is the equation behind the most counterintuitive combined-arms operation in modern military history.
The A-10 Thunderbolt II is old, loud, not stealthy, and somehow still here. In this video we take a look at why the Air Force keeps trying to retire it, why Congress keeps saying no, and why it continues to show up in active combat anyway. Between the GAU-8 Avenger turning things into scrap metal and the fact that shooting a gun is a lot cheaper than launching a missile, the Warthog keeps finding ways to stay relevant even as everything around it gets more expensive and more complicated. Yes, there are BRRT jokes. No, they are not stopping anytime soon.
At the same time, modern warfare is moving in a direction that does not exactly favor a single purpose aircraft designed in the 1970s. Multirole fighters, drones, and long range strike priorities are slowly pushing the A-10 out of the spotlight, even if it is still very good at what it does. So if it is cheap, effective, and popular, why does the Air Force keep trying to get rid of it, and what will actually finish the job? This is a breakdown of the strategy, politics, and reality behind the aircraft that has been “about to retire” for the last two decades.
Instead of killing off the A-10, Congress needs to take back the billions they shovel at Marxist controlled universities every year that indoctrinate simpleminded high school kids to hate America and spend that money buying another 10,000 A-10 jets.
What could be better for close air support, owning coastal waters, killing enemy boats, tanks, vehicle convoys and saving our boots on the ground lives than a flying 30mm gatling cannon that fires 65 one inch diameter depleted uranium projectiles PER SECOND?
This is the best (and most intelligent) writing in defense of the A-10 I've ever read. Boneyarding them so the F-35 can replace it is just eff'g stupid.
Great story I used to see these planes from time to time roaring over my house they were the craziest looking planes and loud.
Glad to hear they’re still out there. Pilots I knew that flew them loved them especially in the war games in training and exercises what we called “up range”
People in our country may not realize it but in many ways much of our country is a warrior class or at least loves, reveres, respects and supports the warrior class.
love to hear about their successes and stories and share in their moments. Grateful of the fact that currently we have a commander and chief who has their back and treasures their talents skills and sacrifice enough that he will put all our military might and skills on the line to bring back the one.
Some say we are in the worst of times yet if a person will be honest and look they also can see it is the best of times in many ways.
From what I have read (Could Be Wrong) from day 1 the AF brass hated, loathed, despised this plane. It doesn't fly High, it doesn't fly Fast, it doesn't shoot own other planes, They Hate it. All it does is support the other branches. Grunts Love it and just as important Joe/Jane Sixpack Love It,
The A-10’s success is very much in line with the design parameters of the AK-47. The US DoD has had an almost fatal obsession with sophisticated vs effective. To the vast enrichment of US contractors and retired flag officers guiding procurements. Trump and Hegseth seem, for the first in my lifetime, to be disrupting the sophistication hollowing out of our force projection capabilities. Excelsior!
Why the A-10 Warthog Solved What the US Navy Couldn't at Hormuz
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEAS7wYPFoM
Mar 26, 2026 #USNavy #A10Warthog #StraitOfHormuz
The US Navy destroyed 120 Iranian warships — and Hormuz is still closed. Two carrier strike groups, eight Aegis destroyers, and $40 billion in naval firepower couldn't reopen a six-mile shipping lane clogged with 1,500 fast boats. The answer wasn't a newer ship or a bigger missile. It was a 50-year-old Air Force jet the Pentagon wanted to throw away.
The A-10 Warthog was never designed for naval warfare. It was built to kill Soviet tanks on the plains of Europe. But its GAU-8 cannon, low-speed maneuverability, and titanium-armored cockpit turned out to be the exact engineering solution for a problem the Navy's blue-water arsenal was never built to handle — cheap, fast, swarming targets in a confined corridor. This is the equation behind the most counterintuitive combined-arms operation in modern military history.
(Snip)
They put out great stuff.
The Alternative
Did Iran End the A-10’s Career?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHDWAeAxAYE
Apr 5, 2026 #airforce #military #war
The A-10 Thunderbolt II is old, loud, not stealthy, and somehow still here. In this video we take a look at why the Air Force keeps trying to retire it, why Congress keeps saying no, and why it continues to show up in active combat anyway. Between the GAU-8 Avenger turning things into scrap metal and the fact that shooting a gun is a lot cheaper than launching a missile, the Warthog keeps finding ways to stay relevant even as everything around it gets more expensive and more complicated. Yes, there are BRRT jokes. No, they are not stopping anytime soon.
At the same time, modern warfare is moving in a direction that does not exactly favor a single purpose aircraft designed in the 1970s. Multirole fighters, drones, and long range strike priorities are slowly pushing the A-10 out of the spotlight, even if it is still very good at what it does. So if it is cheap, effective, and popular, why does the Air Force keep trying to get rid of it, and what will actually finish the job? This is a breakdown of the strategy, politics, and reality behind the aircraft that has been “about to retire” for the last two decades.
I feel like the USAF sent the A-10s to Iran hoping they'd be destroyed, irreparably damaged, or lost in accidents.
And the things amaze again!
Instead of killing off the A-10, Congress needs to take back the billions they shovel at Marxist controlled universities every year that indoctrinate simpleminded high school kids to hate America and spend that money buying another 10,000 A-10 jets.
What could be better for close air support, owning coastal waters, killing enemy boats, tanks, vehicle convoys and saving our boots on the ground lives than a flying 30mm gatling cannon that fires 65 one inch diameter depleted uranium projectiles PER SECOND?
This is the best (and most intelligent) writing in defense of the A-10 I've ever read. Boneyarding them so the F-35 can replace it is just eff'g stupid.
Wow! Thank you!
Great story I used to see these planes from time to time roaring over my house they were the craziest looking planes and loud.
Glad to hear they’re still out there. Pilots I knew that flew them loved them especially in the war games in training and exercises what we called “up range”
People in our country may not realize it but in many ways much of our country is a warrior class or at least loves, reveres, respects and supports the warrior class.
love to hear about their successes and stories and share in their moments. Grateful of the fact that currently we have a commander and chief who has their back and treasures their talents skills and sacrifice enough that he will put all our military might and skills on the line to bring back the one.
Some say we are in the worst of times yet if a person will be honest and look they also can see it is the best of times in many ways.
Jack of Spades
Amen and amen.