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Originally Posted by Jeroen certainly very ugly and very effective: Warthog A10? |
1:72 Fairchild Republic A-10A Thunderbolt II 77-0250 "Chopper Popper", USAF 706th Tactical Fighter Squadron "Cajuns", 926th Tactical Fighter Group based ar King Fahd International Airport, Saudi Arabia, Operation Desert Storm 1991(HobbyMaster)
Oh I wish I had a gun just like the A-10
I'd be happy as a baby in a playpen
I'd mow 'em down like a weed-eater
With that 30 millimeter
I wish I had a gun just like the A-10
These lines from the song "I wish I Had a Gun Just Like the A-10" by Dos Gringos** aptly describes A-10's primary weapon - its 30mm GAU-8/A Avenger Gatling gun AKA the BRTTTT is!!!
** be warned the lyrics of their songs, which are fighter pilot themed, are explicit. Advise caution while listening to them. A-10 Specifications Crew: One
Main role: A-10 - close air support, OA-10 - airborne forward air control
Manufacturer: Fairchild Republic Co.
Power Plants: Two General Electric TF34-GE-100 turbofans, Thrust: 9,065 pounds per engine
Length: 16.16 meters (53 ft 4 ins)
Height: 4.42 meters (14 ft 8 ins)
Wingspan: 17.42 meters (57 ft 6 ins)
Speed: 420 miles per hour (Mach 0.56)
Ceiling: 13,636 meters (45,000 ft)
Maximum Takeoff Weight: 22,950 kg. (51,000 lbs.)
Range: 800 miles (695 nautical miles)
Armament: One 30 mm GAU-8/A seven-barrel Gatling gun; maximum 7,200 kg (16,000lbs.) of mixed ordnance on eight under-wing and three under-fuselage pylon stations, including 225 kg (500 lbs.) Mk-82 and 900 kg (2,000 lbs.) Mk-84 series low/high drag bombs, incendiary cluster bombs, combined effects munitions, mine dispensing munitions, AGM-65 Maverick missiles and laser-guided/electro-optically guided bombs; infrared countermeasure flares; electronic countermeasure chaff; jammer pods; 6.99 cm (2.75 in.) rockets; illumination flares and AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles.
The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is probably the most easily recognisable and well known ground attack jets in the world. It is a single-seat, twin turbofan engine, straight wing jet aircraft developed by Fairchild-Republic for the United States Air Force. It is commonly referred to by the nicknames "Warthog" or "Hog", although the A-10's official name(Thunderbolt II) comes from the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, a World War II fighter-bomber that was also effective at attacking ground target
The A-10 was primarily designed for close air support (CAS) of friendly ground forces, attacking armored vehicles and tanks, and providing quick-action support against enemy ground forces. It entered service in 1976 and is the only production-built aircraft that has served in the USAF that was designed solely for CAS. Its secondary mission is to provide forward air controller–airborne support, by directing other aircraft in attacks on ground targets. Aircraft used primarily in this role are designated OA-10.
The A-10 was designed around the 30 mm GAU-8 Avenger rotary cannon AKA BRRRTTT(the sound it makes when fired).
The A-10's airframe was designed for durability, with measures such as titanium armor to protect the cockpit and aircraft systems, enabling it to absorb a significant amount of damage and continue flying. Its short takeoff and landing capability permits operation from airstrips close to the front lines, and its simple design enables maintenance with minimal facilities. The A-10 served in the Gulf War (Operation Desert Storm), the American led intervention against Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, where the A-10 distinguished itself. The A-10 also participated in other conflicts such as in Grenada, the Balkans, Afghanistan, Iraq, and against Islamic State in the Middle East.
The A-10A single-seat variant was the only version produced, though one pre-production airframe was modified into the YA-10B twin-seat prototype to test an all-weather night capable version. In 2005, a program was started to upgrade remaining A-10A aircraft to the A-10C configuration, with modern avionics for use with precision weaponry. The U.S. Air Force had stated the F-35 would replace the A-10 as it entered service, but this remains highly contentious within the USAF and in political circles. With a variety of upgrades and wing replacements, the A-10's service life can be extended to 2040; the service has no planned retirement date as of June 2017.
During the Gulf War in 1991, the A-10 destroyed more than 900 Iraqi tanks, 2,000 other military vehicles and 1,200 artillery pieces. A-10s also shot down two Iraqi helicopters with the GAU-8 cannon.
The first of these(an Iraqi Bo105) was shot down by Captain Robert "Swaino" Swain over Kuwait on 6 February 1991 for the A-10's first air-to-air victory ( A-10A 77-0205 which was latter named "Chopper Popper" - which is this particular HM model). The A-10's second air to air kill( an Iraqi Mi-8) was made by Capt. Todd "Shanghai" Sheehy of the 511th TFS while flying A-10A 81-0964.
Four A-10s were shot down during the war by surface-to-air missiles. Another two battle-damaged A-10s and OA-10As returned to base and were written off. Some sustained additional damage in crash landings.The A-10 had a mission capable rate of 95.7 percent, flew 8,100 sorties, and launched 90 percent of the AGM-65 Maverick missiles fired in the conflict. Shortly after the Gulf War, the Air Force abandoned the idea of replacing the A-10 with a close air support version of the F-16 (A-16).
The Warthog is famously designed to absorb damage, with the pilot sitting inside a titanium armored "bathtub" and the aircraft having a host of redundant systems to help make sure it gets back safely no matter what. A-10s can fly with significant portions of their wings or even an entire engine shot away.
The A-10 has demonstrated its durability in combat on numerous occasions, with aircraft surviving serious damage to their wings, tails, fuselage, and engine pods.
A-10A 77-0205 "Popper Chopper" & Capt Swain's kill
A-10 77-0205 was the 130th A-10 manufactured.
On February 06, 1991, Captain Bob Swain was flying this particular A-10 on anti-armor sorties in central Kuwait during Operation Desert Storm. After dropping six 500-pound bombs and taking out two Iraqi tanks with Maverick missiles, he saw potential aerial targets several miles away, just barely moving around.
"I noticed two black dots running across the desert that looked really different than anything I had seen before, They weren't putting up any dust and they were moving fast and quickly over the desert."
He was tracking what he thought was a helicopter. When his OV-10 Bronco observation plane confirmed the target, Swain moved in for the kill. One of the targets broke off and moved north (back toward Iraq), the other moved south. The A-10 pilot tracked the one moving south but couldn't get a lock with his AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles because the target was too close to the ground, just 50 feet above.
So he switched to the A-10's 30mm GAU-8 Avenger cannon. It would go on to be the first air-to-air kill in the A-10's operational history. But Swain didn't know that. He was just concerned with taking it down and started firing a mile away from the helicopter. His shots were on target, but the helicopter didn't go down.
"On the final pass, I shot about 300 bullets at him," Swain recalled to a press pool at the time. "That's a pretty good burst. On the first pass, maybe 75 rounds. The second pass, I put enough bullets down, it looked like I hit with a bomb."
Swain's A-10 became known as the "Chopper Popper" in Air Force lore and is now displayed on the grounds of the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.
It was later confirmed that Swain's victim was an Iraqi Army Bo105 helicopter similar to this one:
The BRRRTTT. The names of the pilot and his Crew Chief from that helicopter kill mission, Chopper Popper(which basically is a shrimp clutching a helicopter in its pereiopods) am Iraqi flag(signifying kill mark) painted on.
The A-10 also has these pilot stairs which can be retracted into the fuselage.
Note the A-10's Pave Penny Pod mounted on an external pylon just below the cockpit, designed specifically for the pod. The Pave Penny is a laser spot tracker to enable them to track a laser spot on the ground (it does not produce a laser beam itself, so the aircraft cannot launch and guide laser-guided bombs against ground targets without additional hardware).
Weapon Loadout - L to R (ALQ-101 ECM pod, LAU-61 rocket pod, AGM-65 Maverick TV/Laser guided missile,CBU-87 Cluster bombs X 4,AGM-65 Maverick,LAU-61 rocket pod, 2 X AIM-9L Sidewinder A2A missile)
The model came with additional weapon attachments. Switched the CBU-87s with Mk-82 bombs and the ALQ-101 ECM pod with ALQ-131 ECM pod. Note how the main landing gear wheels are partially visible in their wing mounted landing gearpods
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Originally Posted by Foxbat Great addition to your collection
Excellent detailing and nice to see some new models being posted on this thread after a long time. Where was this procured from? A shot of all your Vietnam era fighters would be nice. |
Thank you. The only other 1:72 Vietnam Era fighter in my collection is Capts Steve Ritchie and Chuck DeBellevue's F-4D. Col Robin Olds F-4C is in smaller 1/100 scale.
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Originally Posted by FrozeninTime @sandesh - beautiful model. Loved it. |
Thank you.