The Air Force has been trying for decades to kill the A10…the fighter mafia spearheaded by former USAFCS Gen McPeak hated the A10. The fighter mafia always felt CAS was not the Air Force’s job and that more expensive more technologically advanced aircraft is what was needed. CSAF Walsh just simply carries on this legacy.

In the modern arena the F15 and F18 have proven themselves the class of the air. The F35 keeps having more and more issues forcing European partner countries to reconsider ordering them. No one plane is going to meet the demands of all parameters because of the needs of each service. Most of all the F35 will never fill the role of the A10…the A10 was built to hold off the Russian hordes at the Fulda Gap and proved itself capable of doing that in Desert Storm, OIF, OEF…

Like it or not USAF needs a modern A10…dust off the blueprints and fire up the assembly line. This is what the Army and Marines needs to do CAS..no doubt the Marines would like a new Super Harrier for the role too.