Heads-up for Warthog fans

A VW Beetle fitted with a gun like that would mean the end of Road Rage incidents…..

Great pic.

Presumably they designed the A-10 after the trial with the WV Beetle (Bug) stalled the air cooled engine? 😀

Also, here is a famous photo of just how big the Avenger Cannon is.
The A-10 is actually built around the cannon !!

TNZ

Here’s a great link on a female pilot who brought her badly-damaged Wart-Hog back to base after a mission over Baghdad
http://www.talkingproud.us/EditorChoice041103.html

TNZ

we could be seeing quite a bit of Apache activity in the near future. 🙂

I’m in Claydon, and we’re already seeing quite a few of them around here. I was lucky enough to have a hangar tour a couple of weeks back, and there were nine of them in there. The Wattisham Apache unit goes into overdrive from November.

Back on track, I do feel that the A-10 is the last of the “real” aeroplanes, triple redundant flight control system, two hydraulic and then you’re down to good ole’fashoned pulleys and cables!
How popular is it? Well when asked what they would like to fly, 77% of USAF Academy student pilots said they’d prefer the A-10 over anything else!

Good point. It’s a flying tank so no reason why it shouldn’t look like a tank.

They had an A-10 parked where you could get up close to it. I was surprised how agricultural it was, particularly around the sharp end. I know it was heavily armoured and not designed to be sleek but I was still taken aback to see gigantic rivets and Philips-head screws everywhere.

There was quite a bit of revisionism in US aviation history when the A-10 undertook the role of the Il-2. Suddenly the Il-2’s concept wasn’t such a bad idea after all!

I went to an open day or similar at Bentwaters in around 1980, I guess.

They had an A-10 parked where you could get up close to it. I was surprised how agricultural it was, particularly around the sharp end. I know it was heavily armoured and not designed to be sleek but I was still taken aback to see gigantic rivets and Philips-head screws everywhere.

Back in the 80’s I had a business that took me to such places as RAF Woodbridge, Bentwaters, Alconbury, Lakenheath and Feltwell. One contract I had was supplying goods to the Bases Rod & Gun Clubs, the Tuesday Herkybird from Woodbridge taking loads of gear to Germany and Incirlik as well as other places.

The Bentwaters R&G was right opposite one of the Warthog Squadrons and although the compounds were surrounded by barbed wire what an awe inspiring machine they were almost within spitting distance! One visit from Bentwaters through to the rear entrance to Woodbridge took you parallel to the huge runway, still recall seeing 6 of them line abreast on that massive concrete.

On my visits through the roads of Fens and Wolds of Cambs and Lincs yes often two A-10’s would come in at me on a ‘kill’ one always photographing (presumably) the others expertise, the manoeuvrability was quite fantastic

Sadly both B/W and W/B bases closed a few years ago but the Army are having a new base built at W/B where visiting choppers from Wattisham are frequent visitors, so we could be seeing quite a bit of Apache activity in the near future. 🙂

superb pick damien ,i can almost hear the phrrrip.

wow, excellent stuff….if you had trouble spotting them, then the camo’s working well init ?… 😉
Just ask a Taleban rebel….

Excellent pic !!!
Is that a shot from today, Damien ?

Their habit of selecting the occasional passenger car to execute mock attacks on was endearing too.

Bring them back!

Moggy

It happened to us just before hornsea on our way to great cowden to watch the hogs live firing,Dad was explaining to my then nine year old brother what we were going to see, giving a vivid description of the a10.seconds later a little voice said “like those ones” behind the car followed two hogs a tree top level ,just as i scrambled for the camera and dad just missing the hedgerows they pulled off their pursuit.

In the late 70’s and early 80’s my parents had a static caravan on the former USAAF base at Leiston. I assume it must have been on the approach to Bentwaters as they were low overhead in pairs from morning to night.

Their habit of selecting the occassional passenger car to execute mock attacks on was endearing too.

Bring them back!

Moggy

That happened around my place in 1990 … They were training for Desert Storm, and, during 2 days, they didn’t stop making mock attacks on cars 🙂

I also miss those Reforger operations. Even if I was quite young by then. Those were the days where seeing 50 jets & helicopters in the sky wasn’t uncommon. Nothing beats a swarm ov Chinooks low level, with rubber fuel tanks, howitzers, and hummers slung under the fuselage.

Some of us can get REAL close to them…. Spent an enjoyable time escorting Public Affairs within 200ft of runway edge for departure of A-10’s & F-16’s today… Sitting in the sun watching planes close up & getting paid for it…God I hate this job!!!!

Lucky sod! 😉

Some of us can get REAL close to them…. Spent an enjoyable time escorting Public Affairs within 200ft of runway edge for departure of A-10’s & F-16’s today… Sitting in the sun watching planes close up & getting paid for it…God I hate this job!!!!

There’s also a certain amount of ‘Lysander’ about them.

An aircraft that can’t possibly be mistaken for any other.

Moggy

Indeed they are missed. I grew up in Suffolk and the A-10’s were a big part of my childhood, hardly a day would pass where you didn’t see them whistling along right down on the deck (well the 250ft NATO limit anyway! 😀 ). Sadly I didn’t make it over to Lakenheath yesterday, too busy decorating the living room! 🙁

‘Hogs at Airshows

In addition to Moggy’s comments about pairs of A10’s romping around East Anglia at near-treetop level, who else remembers their “pairs” act at IAT in the late 70’s and early 80’s at Greenham Common? (I know it’s RIAT now, but it was still only IAT in those days).

A pair of A-10s would take off together, and then show how effectively two of the beasties could keep a ground target under attack – their manouverability meant that they could bring one of the two Gatlings to bear for a potential firing pass every 20 – 30 seconds or so (well, that’s how I remember it).

They are indeed sadly missed.

Paul F