USAF Contemplates A-10.

A joint-service Pentagon review of close air support (CAS) needs will include exploration of a potential successor to the venerable Fairchild-Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II close-air support aircraft, according to the head of the US Air Force's Air Combat Command.

USAF Contemplates A-10.

"A follow on may be something we need to think about," Gen. Herbert Carlisle said during a 12 February press roundtable at the Air Force Association Air Warfare Symposium. "Another weapons system programme may be something we need to consider as we look at the gaps and seams in the future and what we're doing."

The USAF is planning a week-long review of CAS needs with officials from the US Army, the US Marine Corps, and the US Navy. Gen Carlisle said officers from all four services will study future CAS needs beyond A-10 retirement and will present the results to their respective chiefs on 6 March.

For the second year in a row, the USAF has requested permission to retire the A-10, which it argues is not suitable for use against adversaries with access to more sophisticated air defenses. The plan has met resistance on Capitol Hill, where some lawmakers argue that multirole aircraft are not always a suitable substitute for the heavily armored, low-flying A-10.

The general said that any new CAS aircraft will have to be able to survive in contested environments.

"Part of the discussion we continually have is, what is [the battlefield] going to look like in 2020 and 2025?" he explained. "My belief is that contested environments are going to go up because adversaries know what the United States can do when we own the airspace, and they will continue to try and deny that to us."

"Do I think we'll have to perform CAS in contested environments? Yes I do," he added.