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kilo delta
January 19th, 2010, 01:43
Boeing Begins A-10 Thunderbolt Wing Assembly for US Air Force
MACON, Ga., Jan. 18, 2010 -- The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] today announced that it has begun assembling the first A-10 Thunderbolt replacement-wing set at its Macon facility. The U.S. Air Force awarded Boeing the contract, worth up to $2 billion, in June 2007 to provide as many as 242 A-10 replacement-wing sets through 2018.

"This is a phenomenal accomplishment for this Boeing Macon team and a real tribute to the partnership between Boeing and the Air Force to keep these vital aircraft flying in support of U.S. military men and women," said Dennis Muilenburg, Boeing Defense, Space & Security president and CEO. "We are honored to help extend the life of these storied planes as they serve our warfighters in their essential close-air support missions. This is also an important milestone in Boeing's drive to offer our customers maintenance and modification support on a wide range of aircraft, regardless of the plane's original manufacturer."

Boeing will deliver the replacement wing sets to Hill Air Force Base, Utah, in four parts: three wing sections and an installation kit. Air Force personnel will install the wings. Boeing is scheduled to deliver the first wing set in September and up to 50 wing sets a year at peak production.

The A-10 Thunderbolt, also known as the Warthog, is a twin-engine jet aircraft designed for close-air support of ground forces. More than 350 aircraft are currently in the U.S. fleet participating in both Iraq and Afghanistan operations.

A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is one of the world's largest defense, space and security businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world's largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is a $32 billion business with 70,000 employees worldwide.

Link (http://boeing.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=1034)

safn1949
January 19th, 2010, 06:26
The Air Force tried to get rid of the A-10 a bunch of times,that's my understanding.But it gets the job done better then anything else.I would love to hear from any vets with first hand knowledge of this.:USA-flag:

Snuffy
January 19th, 2010, 06:34
Good news!

I too was under the impression that they were trying to be rid of the A-10, but apparently its just too damned useful to actually get rid of.

Glad to see them making an effort to revitalize these machines!

:applause:

kilo delta
January 19th, 2010, 08:13
Just what could replace the Hawg?:) Are there any cost affective aircraft in service or in the design phase that could sustain the same levels of battle damage, could be relatively easy to maintain in the field and could possibly match the punch of the GAU-8?

Allen
January 19th, 2010, 09:20
Add the A-10 to a growing list of plane the AF can't get a rid of.

The list:
B-52
U-2
C-130
T-38
A-10

mfitch
January 19th, 2010, 12:45
The nice thing about old planes is that all their bugs are known, and many improvements have been added. In the list above note that current B-52's are not A models and neither are C-130's (so many versions of that one, I fear they will have to wrap around on the alphabet e.g., C-130AA).

Of course the politics of funding maintenance is easier than the politics of expensive new programs. Of course current beloved, old planes were once expensive, quirky new planes too, but that is easily forgotten.

OBIO
January 19th, 2010, 13:02
I read that at one point they had planned to phase out the A-10 and use an F-16 to do the down and dirty work...but the F-16 could not match the A-10 for low speed, low level work. The A-10 is a superb attack/ground support aircraft...there is no other plane in the US inventory that can do the job as well. I am glad to see that the Warthog is getting updated and refurbished for many more years of service.

OBIO

jmig
January 19th, 2010, 13:55
I read that at one point they had planned to phase out the A-10 and use an F-16 to do the down and dirty work...but the F-16 could not match the A-10 for low speed, low level work. The A-10 is a superb attack/ground support aircraft...there is no other plane in the US inventory that can do the job as well. I am glad to see that the Warthog is getting updated and refurbished for many more years of service.

OBIO

F-16 can't loiter like the A-10 can either. A-10 is like the A-1 Sandy of Vietnam. Carry a ton of $hit and hang around for an hour.

MyassisDragon
January 19th, 2010, 22:08
I've often thought that the best name for the A-10 should have been the IL-2 Sturmovik II. The designs and roles are that similar.

Piglet
January 20th, 2010, 00:41
I've often thought that the best name for the A-10 should have been the IL-2 Sturmovik II. The designs and roles are that similar.

That would be the Sukhoi SU-25 "Frogfoot", comrade

HundertzehnGustav
January 20th, 2010, 02:23
F-16 can't loiter like the A-10 can either. A-10 is like the A-1 Sandy of Vietnam. Carry a ton of $hit and hang around for an hour.

That about sums it up. Maybe add that the Ordinance can be placed precisely where it is needed.

kilo delta
January 20th, 2010, 06:56
I'd doubt the Falcon's ability to take some hostile fire and still be capable of bringing the pilot home......something that the A-10 was expressly designed to do.