Warthog Wednesday

"Cebu" (animoo) 09/03/2014 at 12:45 • Filed to: PEACE THROUGH SUPERIOR FIREPOWER

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I christen thee Warthog Wednesday ! And with what more awesome airplane to replace the ignominious "hump day" moniker than the ground-pounding, tank-splitting A-10 Warthog?

"But wait", you say, "it's retiring". And you would be right- but for one man, Arizona representative Ron Barber. He has introduced amendments to keep the A-10 airborne for at least another year. His district's Davis-Monathan AFB houses a third of the current Warthog fleet, though- it's not like he's doing it out of the goodness of his heart. (He's a politician, remember. They don't come with hearts.)

Even a cardiac-challenged politician has to appreciate the stunning airplane that is the Thunderbolt II. It carries a main armament of a 30mm cannon bigger than a Volkswagen Beetle and the ability to carry two of everything in the American arsenal.

The hitting power of the GAU-8 cannon is so much that even the twin General Electric TF-34-GE100 turbofans providing motive power cannot withstand the recoil. The cannon has to be fired in short bursts, otherwise the barrels would melt themselves into slag. Even this tiniest tickle of the trigger is enough- since the Warthog was designed as a Cold War tank-killer, the devastating impact of up to 70 30mm rounds in a single second renders most any target a smoking crater. Targets aren't limited to just tanks, either- the Warthog has successfully filled Close Air Support and Forward Air Control roles in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya.

The A-10 can take a punch just as easily as it can land them- the redundant and sturdy twin-engine configuration has taken hits that would have knocked most any other plane out of the sky.

With its winning combination of epic firepower and massive durability, the A-10 represents the very best the USAF has to offer for ground-support roles.

What more incredible vehicle is there to name our Wednesday after?

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > Cebu 09/03/2014 at 11:45

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Uh, the GAU-8 is a 30mm cannon. Not 38mm.

It's a "Porch-uh" > Cebu 09/03/2014 at 11:49

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I'm not sure what was going on, but one day a few weeks ago I saw a handful of A-10s coming into Miramar, which I'd never seen in 15 years here. Usually it's just F-18s doing touch-and-gos, and cargo jets. It's great since they come in low over I15 to land, but also not great since I'm paying more attention to them than the road.

The coolest thing (I think) about the Warthog is that the GAU-38 fires depleted uranium rounds.

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > Cebu 09/03/2014 at 12:53

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Sorry, I'm gonna be that guy.

It's official designation is Thunderbolt II, not Warthog II. The jet will NOT stall due to recoil, it stalled (early on), due to the gases created from the ammunition used during testing. To remedy that, the leading edge slats extend and the igniters in the engines fire when the trigger is pulled.

The cannon is fired in short bursts because the ammo drum only houses 1174 rounds of ammo. 1174/72 rounds per second = roughly 16 seconds of fire before you're empty. Although you'd melt the barrels after 4-6 seconds.

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > It's a "Porch-uh" 09/03/2014 at 12:54

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Miramar? My guess would be a group heading back to Korea after a flag.

Cebu > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 09/03/2014 at 12:57

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Thunderbolt II: Damnit, I knew that one. *facepalm*

The rest is new info to me, thanks. I'll update the section on the GAU-8.

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > Cebu 09/03/2014 at 13:00

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It's ok. If you want some more trivia, what's significant about this A-10 from a picture taken in Afghanistan in 2004?

Gamecat235 > Cebu 09/03/2014 at 13:15

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For the record, Ron Barber is more or less a native Tucsonan and his father was stationed at DM and Ron grew up and went to school here. A-10's are just a part of this city, and while Barber is a politician, this is a somewhat popular movement here (to save the A-10 and maintain DM as a relevant AFB, even in this very Democratic city and county).

For many people here DM = A-10's. Period.

T5Killer > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 09/03/2014 at 13:16

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82-665 Was the last a-10 built

Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole > T5Killer 09/03/2014 at 13:19

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Winner!

She's also a bitch. Spent 4 days troubleshooting a hydro leak on the right wing. I don't remember what it was, but we had more panels off that wing than at a normal 400 hour inspection.

Spoon II > Cebu 09/03/2014 at 14:44

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That plane's always been one of my favorites. It's just an amazing design

You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much > Dukie - Jalopnik Emergency Management Asshole 09/04/2014 at 14:57

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I can't believe you can get away with having a shell casing on your desk while cranking out TPS reports at Initoad. Seems like Lumsdane wouldn't really care for that kind of personal expression.