Small Wars Journal

Air Force Reluctantly Upgrades A-10s After Congress Complains

Sun, 02/23/2014 - 1:30pm

Air Force Reluctantly Upgrades A-10s After Congress Complains by Dave Majumdar, rWar is Boring

The Air Force is in a dilemma. It’s committed to buying hundreds of troubled and expensive stealth fighters just as it runs low on money. To make up the difference, the flying branch is trying to retire the A-10 Warthog, a slow but tough—and devastating—ground-attack aircraft.

Now the A-10 might be around for a little while longer, after a tough-talking senator compelled the Air Force to keep the attack jet’s software up to date.

On Feb. 12, the Air Force’s top civilian official directed the service’s Air Combat Command to continue developing a new software upgrade for the A-10 after a complaint from Sen. Kelly Ayotte, a New Hampshire Republican…

Read on.