The Pentagon’s plan to pit its $400 billion F-35B Joint Strike Fighter against the tried-and-true A-10 Thunderbolt II may happen as early as next year.
The latest update to the National Defense Authorization Act includes a stipulation that while Air Force officials cannot yet retire the iconic “Warthog,” they will be expected to set up a battery of tests to gauge each aircraft’s ability to perform close-air-support (CAS) missions.
The director of the Pentagon’s F-35 Integration Office was interviewed by Military.com on Wednesday to elaborate on the battle for CAS supremacy.
“It’ll be a very interesting test,” Air Force Brig. Gen. Scott L. Pleus told the website. “The A-10 was built to deal with tanks in Europe. A low, slow, big cannon on the front of it meant to destroy tanks and assist troops in contacts and do [CAS].”
The officer said F-35s include a smaller version of the 30 mm, seven-barrel GAU-8/A Avenger that has made the A-10 famous since the 1970s, but have added speed to enter more dangerous environments.
“The A-10 is a great CAS platform in a no-threat environment,” Brig. Gen. Scott L. Pleus said. “Where are you getting your bang for your buck? A single-platform A-10 that only does CAS and can’t do anything else and it has to be in an uncontested environment is probably not a realistic place for us to be continuing funding … for the future.”
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The officer, whose history includes time spent as an F-16 pilot, said A-10s cannot get “within 20 miles” of their targets in environments with higher threat levels.
The Pentagon’s vision for the F-35 is to eventually have 2,443 ready to fly at any given moment.
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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