It looks so fragile that if the pilot sneezed it’ll blow the wings off and eject the pilot.
Great fan of Rutan and his aircraft, BUT, THAT is not a replacement for the A-10 either in terms of amount of firepower it can carry, nor in survivability. I doubt that thing will return when you know out an engine (oops, only 1) and half the airframe.
Rutan is a brilliant designer, and his composite craft are sturdier than they look.
But, I don’t see that replacing the A-10 in any wa , shape or form.
That was my thought. The point of the A-10 is that it can take a huge amount of damage and still fly - and still inflict massive damage against enemy ground forces. I don’t want a composite A-10; I want a solid, durable one. I don’t want a high-tech replacement; I want a reliable, combat-ready replacement.
The best answer would be to build new airframes (approved modifications to the A-10 included) from the existing design. I don’t trust the establishment to design something better from scratch, not when they seem to go in the opposite direction every time. The real A-10 does its job. Let’s build more!
The A-10 was basically built around its 30mm Cannon. This aircraft could not possibly be armed with the GRU. A-10’s durability is unmatched. I have seen nothing that comes close to replacing it. I find it astonishing the “plans” (for the lack of the technical term) were destroyed and we cannot duplicate this aircraft.
It looks so fragile that if the pilot sneezed itll blow the wings off and eject the pilot.<- What he sad.
My thoughts too - the A-10 is a hardened air-frame with a Titanium tub for a cockpit - and will fly with half a wing blown off...this looks like it would kill the pilot in hopes of getting off easy as it ran away...