The A-10 Thunderbolt II is an American single-seat, twin-engine, straight-wing jet aircraft developed by Fairchild-Republic for the United States Air Force to provide close air support of ground forces by attacking tanks, armored vehicles and other ground targets with a limited air interdiction capability. It is the first U.S. Air Force aircraft designed exclusively for close air support.

The A-10 saw combat for the first time during the Gulf War in 1991, destroying more than 900 Iraqi tanks, 2,000 military vehicles, and 1,200 artillery pieces. Four A-10s were shot down during the war, all by surface-to-air missiles. A-10s had a mission capable rate of 95.7%, flew 8,100 sorties, and launched 90% of the AGM-65 Maverick missiles fired in the conflict.

General characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Length: 53 ft 4 in (16.26 m)
• Wingspan: 57 ft 6 in (17.53 m)
• Height: 14 ft 8 in (4.47 m)
• Wing area: 506 ft² (47.0 m²)
• Airfoil: NACA 6716 root, NACA 6713 tip
• Empty weight: 24,959 lb (11,321 kg)
• Loaded weight:
  • Standard: 30,384 lb (13,782 kg)
  • On CAS mission: 47,094 lb (21,361 kg)
  • On anti-armor mission: 42,071 lb (19,083 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: 50,000 lb (23,000 kg)
• Powerplant: 2× General Electric TF34-GE-100A turbofans, 9,065 lbf (40.32 kN) each

• Never exceed speed: 450 knots (518 mph,[39] 833 km/h) at 5,000 ft (1,500 m) with 18 Mk 82 bombs[40]
• Maximum speed: 381 knots (439 mph, 706 km/h) at sea level, clean[39]
• Cruise speed: 300 knots (340 mph, 560 km/h)
• Stall speed: 120 knots (220 km/h) [41]
• Combat radius:
  • On CAS mission: 250 nmi (288 mi, 460 km) at 1.88 hour single-engine loiter at 5,000 ft (1,500 m), 10 min combat
  • On anti-armor mission: 252 nmi (290 mi, 467 km), 40 nm (45 mi, 75 km) sea-level penetration and exit, 30 min combat
• Ferry range: 2,240 nmi (2,580 mi, 4,150 km) with 50 knot (55 mph, 90 km/h) headwinds, 20 minutes reserve
• Service ceiling: 45,000 ft (13,700 m)
• Rate of climb: 6,000 ft/min (30 m/s)
• Wing loading: 99 lb/ft² (482 kg/m²)
• Thrust/weight: 0.36

Armament

• Guns: 1× 30 mm (1.18 in) GAU-8/A Avenger gatling cannon with 1,174 rounds
• Hardpoints: 11 (8× under-wing and 3× under-fuselage pylon stations) with a capacity of 16,000 lb (7,260 kg),with provisions to carry combinations of:
  • Rockets:
    • LAU-61/LAU-68 rocket pods (each with 19× / 7× Hydra 70 mm rockets, respectively)
    • 4× LAU-5003 rocket pods (each with 19× CRV7 70 mm rockets)
    • 6× LAU-10 rocket pods (each with 4× 127 mm (5.0 in) Zuni rockets)
  • Missiles:
    • 2× AIM-9 Sidewinders air-to-air missiles for self-defense
    • 8× AGM-65 Maverick air-to-surface missiles
  • Bombs:
    • Mark 80 series of unguided iron bombs or
    • 77 incendiary bombs or
    • BLU-1, BLU-27/B Rockeye II, Mk20, BL-755[42] and CBU-52/58/71/87/89/97 cluster bombs or
    • Paveway series of Laser-guided bombs or
    • Joint Direct Attack Munition (A-10C)[43] or
• Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser (A-10C)*SUU-42A/A Flares/Infrared decoys dispenser pod and chaff pod or
• AN/ALQ-131 & AN/ALQ-184 ECM pods or
• Lockheed Martin Sniper XR & LITENING targeting pods (A-10C) or
• 2× 600 US gallon Sargent Fletcher drop tanks for extended range/loitering time.