A-10 Stats

[RyanW]

Originally Posted by gruundehn

I'm not sure on the GURPS stats but the A-10 is extremely maneuverable, at least comparable to what I have seen WW II fighters do. The first A-10 at DMAFB put on an air show for the troops and it was doing high-G turns, loops, and rolls, etc. without leaving the maintenance area of the flight line once it was in the air, and never more than a couple of hundred feet in altitude, it didn't lose much altitude in all that maneuvering.

I understand it can briefly turn inside just about any jet fighter of the same generation, but loses so much energy doing it that it's basically just a trick A-10 pilots liked to pull to annoy fighter pilots during war games. Slow, lazy turns to lure a fighter jock down into a valley to kill the "bomber", then yank the stick back and fill the sky with simulated 30mm.

Basically taught a generation of F-16 pilots which parts of the sky belong to Warthogs and Frogfoots (Frogfeet?).

[The Colonel]

Originally Posted by RyanW

I understand it can briefly turn inside just about any jet fighter of the same generation, but loses so much energy doing it that it's basically just a trick A-10 pilots liked to pull to annoy fighter pilots during war games. Slow, lazy turns to lure a fighter jock down into a valley to kill the "bomber", then yank the stick back and fill the sky with simulated 30mm.

Basically taught a generation of F-16 pilots which parts of the sky belong to Warthogs and Frogfoots (Frogfeet?).

Accounts from people I've known in and around the RAF also suggest that they are surprisingly manouverable even compared to prop-trainers...

[gruundehn]

Originally Posted by RyanW

I understand it can briefly turn inside just about any jet fighter of the same generation, but loses so much energy doing it that it's basically just a trick A-10 pilots liked to pull to annoy fighter pilots during war games. Slow, lazy turns to lure a fighter jock down into a valley to kill the "bomber", then yank the stick back and fill the sky with simulated 30mm.

Basically taught a generation of F-16 pilots which parts of the sky belong to Warthogs and Frogfoots (Frogfeet?).

No, it isn't a trick, it is a necessity for close air support. The A-10, and any aircraft intelligently designed for work close to the ground and in a high-threat environment will be able to maneuver like that and not lose much energy. An A-10 must be able to maneuver quickly in order to avoid not only weapons but ground obstacles as well.

In my post about the maneuverability of the A-10 I referenced the first A-10 to be assigned to DMAFB and the air show the pilot put on. I repeat that the aircraft was probably never over 200 feet in altitude and if the aircraft had lost energy as you suggest, he would have crashed into a whole bunch of A-7 aircraft parked on the flight line.