As the conflict in Ukraine continues, the West is debating the nature of assistance it intends to provide to the Volodymyr Zelenskyy government.
The US and NATO nations have, so far, provided defensive weapons such as short-range, shoulder-fired anti-tank missiles and Stinger anti-aircraft missiles. Both types of weapons are meant to delay Russian forces.
In recent days, voices have grown for the US and NATO to boost the nature of assistance to include more 'offensive' weapons.
On Thursday, articles appeared in multiple US strategic affairs and defence media outlets calling for the US government to ramp up assistance, including supplying an aircraft that was designed during the Cold War to destroy Russian tanks: The A-10 Thunderbolt II.
Cold War design
The A-10 is a unique aircraft in the US 'tactical' fleet. It is subsonic and meant for low-level operations in support of friendly forces, in an operational concept called 'close air support'. For the close air support role, the A-10 is equipped with a 30mm Gatling gun that is significantly more powerful than the 20mm guns carried by most US fighter jets. The gun and other weapons on the A-10 give it the capability to destroy enemy tanks and other targets and have earned it the moniker 'tank killer'.
Everett Pyatt, a former assistant secretary of the US Navy, wrote in Defence News on Thursday that the US should supply three squadrons (approximately 60 aircraft) of A-10 jets. Pyatt wrote “It is available since the service wants to retire most of the 30-year-old fleet. The airplane was designed to operate in Europe from ill-prepared facilities. Pilot retraining is minimal. All that is needed is painting Ukrainian insignia and delivering the aircraft. This could be done in days.”
Philip Breedlove, a retired general of the US Air Force, also called for supplying the A-10 to Ukraine. Breedlove was supreme allied commander of NATO from 2013 to 2016. In a joint article with Kurt Volker in Center for European Policy Analysis, he argued for supply of A-10 jets that are scheduled to be mothballed. “Thanks to prior military exchange programs, Ukraine already has a small number of pilots trained to fly the A-10. If spare parts and maintenance are required, use part of the US $1bn funding to allow Ukraine to hire private contractors, rather than involving US personnel directly,” Breedlove and Volker wrote.
However, the US government and Air Force have denied there are any plans to supply A-10 jets to Ukraine. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall was quoted by Breaking Defense as saying “I’m not aware of any current plan, or even any discussion of a current plan to field or provide A-10s to the Ukrainians.” Air Force Chief of Staff General C.Q. Brown also denied there were plans to give the A-10 to Ukraine. He was quoted by Breaking Defense as saying it would take time for any air force getting new capabilities to “train and get ready to do”.
Ukraine already operates a subsonic close air support aircraft, the Sukhoi Su-25. However the Su-25 is smaller and carries lesser quantity of weapons than the A-10. The A-10 earned its spurs in the Gulf War of 1991, when it was used to destroy scores of Iraqi tanks. It also served in conflicts in the Balkans and invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.
Questions remain
The A-10 has been praised by analysts and veterans for its capacity to endure battle damage and also 'loiter' over a battlefield, flying for extended periods of time. Faster aircraft generally have lower loitering capability.
Over the past two decades, the US Congress has repeatedly thwarted attempts by the US Air Force to begin retiring the A-10 fleet, in part due to pressure from companies supplying components for the jets.
Critics of the A-10 have argued it has not been 'tested' in a battle environment where the enemy has sophisticated fighters and air defences.
Richard Aboulafia, a US aerospace expert, told Breaking Defense “Many people, understandably, see that Russian column heading to Kiev and hear that distinctive A-10 BRRRT noise. But training crews isn’t a two-hour or two-day process. Making them proficient, and therefore helping them survive against targets that will be shooting back, takes weeks, and more likely months. And if the Russians actually get serious about committing their air force, and achieve total air superiority, these A-10s would simply be destroyed not long after they took off.”