Aircraft & UAVs

A-10 Thunderbolt II

The A-10 Thunderbolt II is a U.S. single-seat, twin-engine attack aircraft built around close air support, austere operations, survivability, and the 30 mm GAU-8/A cannon. U.S. military sources document A-10C use in Operation Inherent Resolve against ISIS and in Afghanistan during Operation Freedom's Sentinel, where its loiter time, precision weapons, and cannon gave commanders a dedicated low-altitude support platform.

Conflict side
U.S.-led coalition and partner forcesUnited States and Afghan government forces
Built by
Fairchild Republic Co.
Built in
United States
A-10 Thunderbolt II, Close air support attack aircraft, Aircraft & UAVs

Service History

In service
Date deployed March 1976; A-10C variant remains in U.S. Air Force service
Used by
U.S. Air Force
Wars
Operation Inherent Resolve, War in Afghanistan

Production History

Designer
Fairchild Republic
Designed
Designed for the U.S. Air Force close-air-support mission; first production A-10A delivered in October 1975
Built by
Fairchild Republic Co.
Built in
United States
Unit cost
$9.8 million in fiscal 1998 constant dollars, U.S. Air Force fact-sheet figure
Produced
1970s-1980s production era
Number built
Approximately 281 in U.S. Air Force total-force inventory, per December 2020 fact sheet
Variants
A-10A, OA-10A, A-10C

Specifications

Crew
One
Engines
Two General Electric TF34-GE-100 turbofans, 9,065 pounds thrust each
Speed
420 mph, about Mach 0.56
Range
800 miles, or 695 nautical miles
Ceiling
45,000 feet
Armament
One 30 mm GAU-8/A seven-barrel Gatling gun plus up to 16,000 pounds of mixed ordnance on 11 pylons
Maximum takeoff weight
51,000 pounds

Conflict Usage

Operation Inherent Resolve
Side: U.S.-led coalition and partner forces

U.S. Air Force A-10s flew Operation Inherent Resolve missions against ISIS, including 2017 combat sorties from Incirlik and Dec. 2024 strikes on ISIS camps in central Syria using A-10s alongside B-52s and F-15s.

War in Afghanistan
Side: United States and Afghan government forces

A-10s returned to Kandahar Airfield in 2018 to support Operation Freedom's Sentinel with close-air-support and precision-strike capacity for U.S. and Afghan operations against Taliban revenue targets.

A-10 Thunderbolt II Images

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Sources