[D. Brian Carter]

It is cheap, slow, low-tech, does not have an afterburner, and is so ugly that the grandiose name "Thunderbolt" was forgotten in favor of "Warthog" or, simply, "the Hog."

I guess my eyesight must be going bad. I think it looks pretty cool, and has a hell of a lot more character than many other aircraft. One of the reasons it's my favorite plane is the way it looks---and sounds---when flying by. It's a shame if this most reliable of close support aircraft is taken out of the sky, especially if it's not replaced by something as reliable and effective. I love the Warthog!

[Blood of Tyrants]

I think that the nake "Thunderbolt" is in honor of the WWII P-47 "Thunderbolt". It too was considered an ugly duckling but it was the primary ground attack plane in the European theather because of it's ability to deliver a tremendous amout of firepower (8-.50 cal mg's, rockets, and bombs) and bring the pilot home despite taking a sever beating.

[RicocheT]

I saw an A-10 doing a full acrobatic routine over the lakefront in Milwaukee last summer. The plane and its pilot were awesome. I had no idea that aircraft was so maneuverable. It was doing acrobatics I thought only the Blue Angles could do. The AF is nuts if it mothballs the A-10.

[Enterprise]

I agree. I have never thought it was an ugly plane.

[Moosefart]

I love it too! Its not pretty and fast but it gets the job done and brings the pilot home safe. The A-10 is not a "fly by wire plane" - it really wants to fly. Modern fighters are so unstable by design that a mere human could not manipulate the controls quickly enough to stay in flight. Computers must monitor and adjust the controls constantly at rates of sometimes thousands of corrections a second. But the long wing span of the A-10 gives it excellent lift and stability. The redundancy of hydraulic and electrical systems keep this bird flying while more sophisticated jets are especially vulnerable to electrical and hydraulic damage in combat. If all the control hydraulic systems fail the A-10 is still able to fly by cables. A-10s have also been known to keep flying and land safely with huge chunks of wing blown away in combat. It's one tough bird.