CSAF Misrepresents A-10 Combat Record in First Gulf War - John Q. Public
For a few years now, the Air Force has committed itself to a political campaign geared toward earning Congressional consent to retire its best Close Air Support (CAS) aircraft, the A-10. Throughout that time, the service has resorted regularly to underhanded, dishonest, and sometimes unlawful tactics. Doing so has backfired, with Congress recently signaling the service in strong terms that it won’t permit retirement of the A-10 without a replacement, and that it’s the Air Force’s job to field that replacement before it dismantles a capability that saves lives on the ground in the nation’s wars.
Despite the dubious track record of this dishonorable strategy for mothballing the A-10, it continues to thrive. Increasingly, it’s clear why: the effort is sponsored at the highest level by none other than Gen. Mark Welsh, the Air Force Chief of Staff (CSAF)…