I thought the A-10 was retired?

[68Charger]

if it is, then what have I been hearing at Ft. Carson all week?

Seems like every afternoon, a nice, loud BrrRRRRUUUUUUP

I keep trying to get a recording, but there's no warning, and there's usually pretty long time between runs (sounds like the A-10, doesn't it?)

plus, I've seen aircraft that look remarkably like the A-10 flying through the sky- straight wings, big fat back end...

[thvigil11]

Not retired yet, but plans are underway. I'm not a fan of the idea without a suitable replacement. Nothing better to an 11B than the sound of one of those ugly ass beauties rolling in on the bad guys.

[Colorado_Outback]

I cant hear it... Do it louder into your computer [Flower]

[SideShow Bob]

Here ya go, is this what you heard ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12AGsn36Ass

[BushMasterBoy]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M242_Bushmaster

I'm pretty sure they are Bushmaster cannons...

[68Charger]

http://youtu.be/xMaQPpgaY4Y?t=5s

just like the sound starting at 0:05s- but no HE bursts follow, so I presume they're using AP rounds (hopefully not DU rounds)

I'm pretty sure the bushmaster's fire rate is way too slow for what I'm hearing- and since I saw A-10 like aircraft (they're pretty far away from me, admittedly), I'm certain that's what I'm hearing.

Only other gun I've heard like this was when they brought some AC-130's to the Ft. Carson range to practice before they deployed them in the sand box- but don't see them in the sky

[thvigil11]

Funny story. Buddy served on a security force in Kuwait back in 96-97. Came from 8 months and was bragging about his lucky charm he dug out of a roadbed. Said he kept it in his pocket the whole deployment. Lucky charm was a DU 30mm round. I complimented him on his brilliance and wished him well with having children in the future. Fast forward to today, him and his wife have adopted 2 kids. Turns out he has bad swimmers. Imagine that.

[clodhopper]

Coming home sterile or coming home in a box.......hmmmmmmm. Course that does require belief that the charm provided critical luck.

[Ronin13]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M242_Bushmaster

I'm pretty sure they are Bushmaster cannons...
Negative- A-10's are armed with the GAU-8 Avenger. "We built this gun, now we just need a way to move it around... I know! Let's build an airplane around it!"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GAU-8_Avenger

I love the A-10... Never got to see one in action in the 'Stan, but got to see plenty of training at Leonardwood, Benning and Drum. And by see I mean we saw the plane, heard the cannon, but never got to see the effects.

[clark]

Not retired yet, but plans are underway. I'm not a fan of the idea without a suitable replacement. Nothing better to an 11B than the sound of one of those ugly ass beauties rolling in on the bad guys.

I personally think they are one of the most beautiful planes around,,,,and when they burp,,,my god what a sound. The armor they have have gotten a lot of folks back alive when a lesser plane would not have. I would marry the bitch.

[roberth]

I love the sound of that cannon going off - you can almost hear the devil laughing as more muzzies go straight to hell.

[Drucker]

I am always amazed that it is still humping away, I was an A-10 crew chief in the late 70s we were thinking of the Fulda Gap not a Stan then, heh.

[Trout Hunter]

Pretty sure its the A-10s. My job site is just north of the runway for Peterson and Ive seen them multiple times in past few weeks flying formations ect right over the jobsite. One perk of being on our jobsite we pretty much get to see all of the Aircraft that the area has on a regular basis.

Only time its bad is when fighters buzz our tower cranes about 2 PM every thursday. Shakes the whole jobsite.

[flogger]

Awesome machine, not sure what they plan on replacing it with. NOT a sound you would want to hear if you were a bad guy.

[TEAMRICO]

Saw four of them Flying over the Springs the other day.
Always loved them.

[sniper7]

I love watching the warthogs. Still my favorite aircraft currently in service

[Singlestack]

Quite an amazing airplane. Many DOD types don't like it because it is quite slow compared with an F-15E, but it takes punishment like no other and is relatively inexpensive to fly/maintain. Great payload too.

[68Charger]

I found this article the other day:
http://www.counterpunch.org/2003/06/09/why-the-air-force-generals-want-to-kill-the-a-10/

makes me love the A-10 even more...
what it was designed to do, it does better than anything... and it does it cheap- so politicians that want to keep the money flowing in their budgets hate it.

[def90]

They have "retired" the A10 several times over the years.. I am sure we will see it again in the future.

sent from a soup can and some string..

[speedysst]

Well, it looks like it will be a while before the Warthog goes away! http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/aircraft/a-10-life.htm

[Dave]

They were fun to watch, the NY Air Guard had some at our airfield so we'd get to watch them. Saw some do their gunneries when I was in Hawaii out on the big island, that cannon is impressive. Most CAS for infantry is getting replaced by attack helos, Super Cobras from USMC and Army's Apache Longbows. As a former Army helo crew chief I'm glad this platform is getting a better look. Yeah, the gun isn't the same, but they can do a lot that a fixed wing plane can't.

[<MADDOG>]

Saw four go overhead today, beautiful machines...

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d108/pperron/IMG_20131118_134635-1_zpsf04e625e.jpg (http://s34.photobucket.com/user/pperron/media/IMG_20131118_134635-1_zpsf04e625e.jpg.html)

[spqrzilla]

Natural Uranium is 99.3% U238 and 0.7% U235. Depleted uranium is what is left over when you "enrich" uranium to pull out the small amount of U235 for use in reactors (less than 20% enriched) or nuclear weapons (all U235). U238 has a half life of approx 4.5 billion years. That means that if you wait for 4.5 billion years, half of the U238 will decay. And its mostly an alpha emitter. Alpha radiation can be blocked by a piece of paper. Your nut sack will suffice.

While that is "radioactive", it is barely so. Rather, describing depleted uranium / U238 as "radioactive" is like calling me handsome.

Depleted uranium projectiles scare me a bit more than pure lead ones would, given uranium's heavy metal toxicity. But that's about it.

Oh, I would not be happy breathing the fumes after a DU warhead penetrating armor.

[BushMasterBoy]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depleted_uranium

All the transuranics are bad for your health. The projectiles were provided by the lowest bidder. Gulf War vets have a far greater chance of having genetically defective children.

[stevelkinevil]

My favorite plane BAR NONE (not just because I'm a former 11B) HUGE mistake if its retired without a "substitute" (because there can be no replacement). And yup I think its sexy as hell.

[<MADDOG>]

My favorite plane BAR NONE (not just because I'm a former 11B) HUGE mistake if its retired without a "substitute" (because there can be no replacement). And yup I think its sexy as hell.

Myself: I prefered a Spectre, but I'm old, and times have changed...

However, if the commies came rolling down the Fulda as some had planned, Hog's all the way!

[Gman]

If you're inside the armor penetrated by one of these DU rounds, you won't live long enough for the fumes or any residual radiation to matter.

I'm a huge fan of the Warthog and hope they stay around as long as the B-52s.

[john145]

I was a crew chief on the A-10. Served in the Air Force from 74 to 78 Nellis AFB in nevada. When i first got there i was on the F-111 but they were moving them out.


So they sent me to school on the A-10 at Davis Monthan AFB in Tuson, when they first came out in 76. AWESOME AIRCRAFT!!!

[Joe_K]

Love the A-10! http://youtu.be/llEWrL9ghyg



Sent from my PRC 117A in my Batmobile disguised as a sedan.

[sniper7]

saw a couple fly near me this last week. very cool plane!

[Colorado Osprey]

So they sent me to school on the A-10 at Davis Monthan AFB in Tucson, when they first came out in 76. AWESOME AIRCRAFT!!!

I remember that transition in Tucson. Had both A-7's and A-10's flying out of Davis Monthan and F-4's from Luke out of Phoenix. They were trying to phase out the A-7 as a ground attack plane and replacing it with the A-10. The A-10 flying all over in southern Arizona was a common sight in the late '70's along with the O-2's. Another cool airplane. Remember when the Thunderbirds used to have an airshow which seemed like every year at Davis Monthan too? T-38's back then ('73-'82).

[Ronin13]

So they sent me to school on the A-10 at Davis Monthan AFB in Tuson, when they first came out in 76. AWESOME AIRCRAFT!!!
I went to the Army intel school at Huachuca, spent a lot of time around Davis Montham... I love the AF chicks there! [Beer] And watching the A-10s take off and land was sweet!