A-10 Thunderbolt... (Warthog)

I was talking to a friend the other day when the
subject of the A-10 Thunderbolt came up..(We have
strange conversations). Actually, we were discussing
the two wars in the Middle East and some of the
aircraft used in those wars.. We were both pretty
sketchy about the plans of the government to scrap
the A-10 to the trash heap. Nothing could be farther
from the truth. The A-10 was built by Fairchild-Republic
with one concept for the engineers...build the plane
around an Avenger 30 millimeter cannon! The gun has
a rate of fire of 4200 rounds per minute. Most pilots
engage a target with short bursts of one or two seconds.
In that two seconds the Avenger cannon fires 150-160
rounds. Designed for close air support, the A-10 is perfect
for its job. The pilot is protected with a titanium 'bathtub'
built around them and the plane is designed for the trouble
it will encounter at lower altitudes. The electronic and hydraulic
systems are triple layered, so if two complete systems are
shot away, the pilot still has another way of completing the
task. Built as a Soviet tank killer during the Cold War, the A-10
had to wait in the wings until the first Middle East war in
1992 to show it's stuff. Over eighty per cent of Saddam's
tanks, trucks, personnel carriers, radar sites, skud missile
sites, and other vehicles were destroyed by the A-10. The
rugged design and basic concept of the plane reminded
pilots and engineers of the P-47 Thunderbolt of World War II
fame and they borrowed the 'Thunderbolt' name. Never to be
confused with the sleek lines of the F-18 or the F-22, the A-10
was more commonly referred to as "The Warthog." The plane
has NOT been allowed to slip into obsolescence, updated in
1978 with a new GPS system,... in 1980 the navigational system
was completely computerized,...in 1999 the A-10 was made
compatible with the night vision goggles of the pilot,...in 2005
new fire control & engagement software upgrades...in 2006
many of the A-10s received new wings..and in 2010 the A-10
is scheduled to receive a new Helmet Mounted Targeting
System so the pilot simply looks at the target and the A-10
can utilize it's weaponry on it.....AND if that big cannon was
not enough, the A-10 can still carry a bomb load of 16,000
pounds. So, the A-10 is not ready for retirement after all, but
will be with us for many years to come.