A-10 Set to Compete with F-35

A-10 Set to Compete with F-35

Opponents of U.S. Air Force efforts to retire its Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II have said the 40-year-old close-air support plane can outperform the Pentagon’s most advanced aircraft.

It turns out the lumbering old plane, nicknamed the Warthog, will get a chance to prove it.

The Air Force’s top general and the Pentagon’s chief weapons tester confirmed Thursday that Lockheed Martin Corp.’s new F-35 Lightning II fighter, equipped with its most modern software, will be tested against the A-10 in 2018 in a comparative evaluation of their capabilities for close-air support, as well as other missions such as air-to-air combat.

Photo by U.S. Air Force

Updated: August 28, 2015 — 11:49 PM
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