Description
The Fairchild-Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is a turbo-fan powered single-seater attack aircraft. The prototype flight took place in 1972, and serial production took place in 1975-1984. In total, 715 examples of this aircraft were built. The main task of the A-10 was to combat armor of the Warsaw Pact in central and western Europe. It was also supposed to balance the quantitative advantage of the USSR over NATO troops in armored weapons. Such a task resulted in the fact that the plane is characterized by a great resistance to damage, unheard of in other assault machines, the armor of the cockpit and a very high overall durability of the structure. The A-10 is also manoeuvrable – at 275 km / h, the turning radius is 300 meters, increasing to just 400m with a speed increase of 550 km / h. The main armament is the 30mm GAU-8 / A rapid-fire cannon. In addition, the plane can carry from 6,500 to 7,300 kg of weapons depending on the amount of fuel transferred. The A-10 Thunderbolt II was used in combat in Operation Desert Storm, where it performed excellently and proved its high value. Technical data: Top speed: 706 km / h; maximum range: 3950 kg, climb speed 30.5 m / s.
