The A-10 Warthog Is Preparing For Its Biggest Upgrade In Over A Decade - The A-10 Warthog.jpg

Too long to post all of it here...read the full article/pictures at

https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...-over-a-decade

....New upgrades for the A-10

The scheme to retire the A-10 had started a knock-on effect with regard to
support and upgrades. Operational testing for the active-duty A-10 fleet at the
422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron (TES) at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, and
the A-10 Program Office at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, had both effectively been
shut down. However, with OIR at its height, by the summer of 2016, this was all
being reversed, with a renewed impetus for mission-critical enhancements for the
A-10.

The planned end of the A-10 briefly stalled some supply chains, but a rolling
series of upgrades were soon back on track. “In 2017, the Lightweight Airborne
Recovery System [LARS] V-12 was installed on all active-duty and Air National
Guard and Reserve Command A-10s to allow pilots to communicate more effectively
with individuals on the ground such as downed pilots and pararescuemen,”
explains Air Force Major Matthew Kading, the A-10 Test Director for the 59th
TES. “This was integrated in [Operational Flight Program, OFP] Suite 8, and all
A-10s now have this system integrated into the Central Interface Control Unit to
provide critical Combat Search and Rescue [CSAR] information.”

As a community with limited funding, the active-duty test effort under the 422nd
and the 59th Test and Evaluation Squadrons and that of the Air National
Guard/Air Force Reserve Command Test Center (AATC) at Tucson Air National Guard
Base, Arizona, now work collectively. The USAF currently fields 281 A-10s, but
there have been numerous failed attempts to reduce the fleet. The USAF's
proposed Fiscal Year 2021 budget looks to cut three squadrons-worth of jets,
effectively 44 Warthogs. This too may well end up curbed and now major A-10
upgrades are moving full steam ahead.

Such is the resurgence of the A-10, that a new Common Fleet Initiative is
planned to keep the type in service and credible out towards 2035. Central to
the upgrades for the A-10 is the need to be survivable in a contested
environment. This involves Warthog pilots evading threats through the additional
use of standoff weapons from longer ranges, combined with the use of updated
tactics. A-10 operations will evolve to include the ability to tackle some
threats with precision weapons from extended ranges. Once these threats are
destroyed, the A-10s will then theoretically be able to swing into more
traditional missions.

“Survivability isn’t just about upgrading equipment and software, it’s about
ensuring we’re going into battle with the most up-to-date and lethal tactics,”
says Major Kading. “What makes the 422nd/59th TES, and the 53rd Wing as a whole,
a unique organization is that we do all of these things."

"Right now, the 422 is working on multiple Tactics Development and Evaluations
[TD&Es] to address an Air Combat Command Tactics Improvement Proposals, known as
a 'TIPs.' One current example is a TIP for Night Medium Altitude Survivability
and Low Altitude Tactics. Modern Night Vision Goggle fidelity has driven the
requirement to re-evaluate if we can execute the A-10’s primary missions at
lower altitudes at night. Other planned TD&Es include adapting CSAR tactics and
engaging maritime targets with AGR-20 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System
[APKWS] rockets. There are also continued efforts to enhance the A-10's
capability to operate from austere environments with minimal support. All these
will allow for greater readiness and mission ability through tactics
improvements," Kading explains. The AGR-20 APKWS II is a guided version of the
veteran 2.75-inch Folded Fin Aerial Rocket, which was added to the A-10’s
arsenal in 2013.

“Suite 9 [fielded in 2019] brought the integration of Situational Awareness
Position (SAP) into the OFP, so JTACs [forward air controllers] can report their
position digitally,” says Kading. “Validation was built in to help prevent
inadvertent targeting of friendly positions with inertially aided munitions. It
also introduced the first phase of engaging multiple targets with
precision-guided munitions. It allowed six weapons to be dropped with a single
'pickle button' press.”

The aircraft can send weapons to different targets with one button push on one
pass, whereas before it took a lot of pilot workload. A-10 pilots can employ
500-pound-class GBU-38 or 54 or 2,000-pound class GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack
Muntions (JDAM) and the aircraft will inform the pilot if they can all hit their
intended targets on a single run.

Suite 9 also included provision for an improved helmet-mounted sight, known as
HObIT (Hybrid Optical-based Inertial Tracker), which is a development of the
Thales Visionix Scorpion helmet that A-10 pilots have been wearing since 2013.
The improved helmet more accurately tracks pilot head movements via a new
optical head tracker, consisting of a series of dots on the canopy.

Biggest upgrade since the A-10C

The upgrade of A-10As to A-10Cs from 2005 onwards was a huge leap for the
Warthog. This essentially added precision weapons, a partial glass cockpit, and
a laser designator pod. “Suite 10 will field in the spring of 2021, and it’s a
foundational step in the modernization of the A-10,” says Kading.

Suite 10 will include “multiple target list improvements” that will enable the
pilot to engage multiple targets with three different weapon types on one pass.
It also includes full AGR-20 APKWS integration, which Kading says “provides the
ability to target at the maximum kinematic range of the rocket with aiming
solutions designed within rocket tolerances.” GBU-31(V)3 JDAM integration brings
expanded capabilities for utilizing new fuze types, and “improved JDAM feedback”
will enable the pilot to have greater confidence in weapon accuracy. “Threat
information can now be shared between A-10s utilizing the data link, which
allows all flight members increased situation awareness for survivability.”

“Operational testing for Suite 11 will begin when Suite 10 fields,” Major Kading
continues. The developmental testing of this phase is currently underway with
the 40th Flight Test Squadron, which is headquartered at Eglin Air Force Base,
Florida. “Suite 11 is the first A-10 OFP that will be built using agile
development methodologies. This will provide a more rapid update cycle for
relevant enhancements.”

“Most of the improvements in this program will focus on hardware integration of
a new High Resolution Display System [HRDS], GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb [SDB]
integration, 3-D audio, jam-resistant GPS, and ARC-210 radio upgrades. New map
software will also be added, along with further enhancements to weapons
employment. Both the method of development and the result will be a major
modernization for the A-10.”

“We are currently working on the HRDS, which is a 11.6-inch, 1920 x 1080-pixel
Multifunction Color Display that replaces [the cockpit’s central ‘six-pack” of
analogue instruments] with a digital primary flight display. This will display
high definition targeting pod footage and a new map engine. It is the most
significant cockpit modernization since the A-10A to A-10C conversion.”

“This upgrade is important because it provides modern navigation instruments to
improve situational awareness when flying in IMC [Instrument Meteorological
Conditions],” Kading explains. “It will make targets much more visible through a
higher definition display of targeting pod ​footage and improved map
imagery will allow enhanced target correlation.”

“SDB testing is currently in developmental testing with the 40th Flight Test
Squadron, Detachment 1, based at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. This
will give the A-10 a four-fold increase in standoff bomb capability and allows
the A-10 to provide weapons effects in much [greater] threat environments than
before.” This is due to the standoff range of these weapons, which means the
A-10 pilot will be able to strike from outside the range of some ground threats.

The USAF completed a project to re-wing a portion of its A-10C fleet on July 25,
2019. The project began in 2007 when Boeing received a $1.1-billion contract to
provide 173 sets of wings. The new wings are expected to last for up to 10,000
equivalent flight hours without requiring a depot inspection and will permit the
modified aircraft to remain in service through 2030 or beyond.

A further project to provide 112 additional wing sets for the remaining A-10Cs
was funded in Fiscal Year 2018. The service is acquiring the wing sets under the
A-10 Thunderbolt Advanced-Wing Continuation Kit (ATACK) program.

A long-held ambition to re-engine the A-10s isn’t included in current plans. New
parts suppliers with modern techniques may help restore the original engine
thrust of the General Electric TF34 engines rather than the slight de-tune that
the aircraft currently operates with.

Together, this host of capability upgrades will keep the A-10 at the forefront
of the USAF CAS mission for at least another decade, and likely substantially
longer. A lot will depend on whether or not the USAF decides to mount another
attack on the Thunderbolt II fleet, but with new investments being made to
recapitalize the A-10 force and with reduced interest in a successor or new
Light Attack platform, all indications are that the A-10 will not be going away
anytime soon.




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