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F-35 To Face Off Against A-10 In CAS Test

Posted by timothy on from the continuing-saga dept.

An anonymous reader writes: Lara Seligman from Defense News reports that the capabilities of the Joint Strike Fighter are to be evaluated for close-air support (CAS) missions. She writes, "To gauge the joint strike fighter's ability to perform in a close-air support role, the Pentagon's top weapons tester has declared the sleek new fighter jet must face off against the lumbering A-10. The Pentagon's Office of Operational Test and Evaluation plans to pit the full-up F-35 against the legacy A-10 Warthog and potentially other fighter jets to evaluate the next-generation aircraft's ability to protect soldiers on the ground."

7 of 502 comments (clear)

  1. Little ol' lady from Pasadena by Tablizer · · Score: 5, Funny

    They keep lowering the bar. Next it will square up against a drunk guy with cataracts in a weathered Cessna.

    --
    Table-ized A.I.
  2. Re:A-10 for the Win by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    It's awesome that the U2's are still flying.

    It'd be good if they could fly... ...With or Without You

  3. Re:Isn't this thing already deployed? by Runaway1956 · · Score: 4, Funny

    You call it a mistake. It's name is "Warthog". Calling it "Thunderbolt" or "Thunderbolt II" just marks you as an outsider. Troops on the ground sure don't call it that. "Incoming Hog, duck!" No one wants to be clipped by a wing as the Hog passes overhead. Let's see if those fucking F-35's get that low to the ground.

    --
    "Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
  4. Re:A-10 for the Win by Hognoxious · · Score: 5, Funny

    The point is that F-35 was sold as a "multirole" airplane, to replace F-16 and A-10.

    Makes perfect sense - it's equal to the F-16 for air-to-ground and almost as good a fighter as the A-10.

    --
    Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
  5. Re:A-10 for the Win by Hognoxious · · Score: 3, Funny

    You're too kind.

    --
    Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
  6. Re: Isn't this thing already deployed? by arglebargle_xiv · · Score: 5, Funny

    It's staged because the F-18 kicks the ass off the F-35, and the cost of operation of the F-35 sucks as well, even though we're stuck with it.

    You didn't read the rest of the story, which states "In order to make the comparison fair, the A10 will be fuelled with paraffin wax and weedkiller, have a large number of anvils bolted to it, and will be dragging a large boat anchor. 'We hope this at least evens the odds a bit so the F35 will look OK', a Pentagon spokesthing was quoted as saying".

  7. Re: Isn't this thing already deployed? by Hognoxious · · Score: 4, Funny

    the pilots will turn the boat anchor into a weapon

    I can just picture this.

    A10 Approaches tank.
    Tank commander: Ooooooh shiiiit!
    A10 Overflies tank.
    Tank commander: Phew!
    *CLUNK*
    Tank is now thirty feet from where it was. And upside down.

    --
    Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."