The A-10 can't be replaced..

Quote:On paper, the Air Force plans to start mothballing the A-10 in 2018, with the last Warthogs sent to the boneyard by 2021. But last month Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James said that the retirement of the A-10 would likely have to be delayed further as the military continues to rely on the low-and-slow attack plane for close-air support (CAS) missions flown against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria. Even more telling, the Air Force Material Command (AFMC) is bringing the depot line for A-10 maintenance and repair back up to full capacity, according to Aviation Week.

The Hawg isn’t going anywhere.

“They have re-geared up, we’ve turned on the depot line, we’re building it back up in capacity and supply chain,” AFMC chief Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski recently told Aviation Week. “Our command, anyway, is approaching this as another airplane that we are sustaining indefinitely.”

Popular Mechanics

The A-10 is a Flying Marvel for air to ground superiority and should remain in our arsenal for years to come. They can take very serious hits and still return the pilot back to base, Very few aircraft can say that.

That's just the A-10's gun folks...............just the gun.

This is what that gun does:

When on the ground, the single coolest thing you can see. Comes over so low you can actually see the pilot. Those guys are badasses. Bet they never buy their own drinks in theater if there are ground pounders about.

The A-10 is living proof that you don't need a super high performance stealth fighter for ground attack missions. Theories about giving the F-35 the replacement slot for the A-10 are ridiculous. The F-35 (or better, more F-22's) should stay in the sky protecting A-10's as they do the work on the ground.