God and Country

As noted previously, the US Air Force has proposed cutting a large number of A-10s from the inventory in response to the reduced Department of Defense budget.

An article at AOL Defense notes this isn’t the first time this has been proposed, and the author starts to rattle off the reasons people think the A-10 Thunderbolt II (better known as Warthog) is so great:

Two things make the A-10 especially fine at CAS: its amazing 30mm cannon which can destroy a tank with ease; and the Read more…

Investigators determined pilot error caused the 6 April 2011 crash of a US Navy F/A-18F Super Hornet near Lemoore Naval Air Station, California.  Both the pilot and the backseat NFO were killed.

The pilot, Lt. Matthew I. Lowe, 33, of Plantation, Fla., and the plane’s weapons officer, Lt. Nathan H. “Beefcake” Williams, 28, of Oswego, N.Y., were Read more…

A C-5 Galaxy – the US Air Force’s largest cargo aircraft — from Westover Air Reserve Base, Massachusetts, performed a flyby of Gillette Stadium at the conclusion of the National Anthem on Sunday.  The ceremony opened the NFL Patriots-Ravens football game.

Inscribed along the bottom of the aircraft, visible from the stands, was an emblem and “Go Pats!”  The Patriots went on to win.

You never know, fighter aircraft flybys may have similar endorsements on their lower wings or fuselages…  Read more…

The Air Force has released the report of the September 2011 crash of an A-10C Thunderbolt II in Georgia.

According to the report, the mishap aircraft’s stall warning system malfunctioned at 15,000 feet, preventing stall warning tones from functioning properly… Without evidence of additional malfunctions, the mishap pilot continued the FCF.

At 34,000 feet, the mishap aircraft experienced a stall Read more…

The Stars and Stripes reports the F-15E Strike Eagle that crashed in March in Libya was brought down due to a weight imbalance.

An Air Force investigation into what caused the crash of an F-15E Strike Eagle during a night combat operation over Libya last March has concluded that a weight imbalance was a major factor…

The situation deteriorated Read more…

The Military Times notes the unveiling of a Navy airship at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey.

The MZ-3A is the Navy’s scientific test platform for surveillance cameras, radars and other sensors…[used] “to prove LTA [lighter-than-air] has a place in our military construct,” said Cmdr. Jay Steingold.

The slow, long-endurance vehicles are variations on the blimp/dirigible and could fill a variety of roles.  The Navy isn’t the only one to have such a program:  Read more…

The Air Force Times says Langley AFB’s F-22 fleet has returned to flight after a short grounding following an oxygen-related incident last week.

The rest of the USAF F-22 fleet was not affected.

The US Air Force has reported that an F-15C Eagle from Nellis AFB crashed near Alamo, NV, yesterday afternoon.  The pilot ejected and had “started walking” when he was picked up by a rescue helicopter about 30 minutes later.

As usual, the AF will investigate the mishap and report on it some months from now.

Public reports indicate the US Air Force has grounded its F-22 Raptors again — after a pilot reported an oxygen problem, again.  In this case, it appears to be a single-unit “pause” at Langley AFB, as opposed to a fleet-wide grounding.

Air Force officials are meeting on Friday to determine whether it is necessary to extend the grounding to the rest of the F-22 fleet. The pilot experienced what is known as “hypoxia,” and had to return to base.

The Raptors were previously grounded for months, though no specific cause was found for the reported oxygen issue.

An MQ-9 Reaper has crashed on final approach at Holloman AFB, New Mexico.  The base reported that the owning squadron was a training unit for the MQ-9.

The AT-6C, a modified version of the T-6 currently used to train US Air Force and Navy pilots, has reportedly been used to deliver LGBs out of Tucson, Arizona.  The Air Force Reserve Command Test Center has been testing the AT-6C, which is explicitly not an in-development weapons acquisition program.

Though light attack is not an Air Force procurement program, AATC’s task is to report its findings to senior leaders early next year to help refine requirements…

As if to prove the point, the aircraft has a civilian N-number, rather than a military designation:

There aren’t too many civilian aircraft in the world equipped to Read more…

An A-10C Warthog crashed in Georgia Monday afternoon.  The pilot ejected and was being evaluated at Moody Air Force Base’s medical facilities.

MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. — An Air Force A-10C pilot assigned to the 23rd Wing ejected from an aircraft during a routine mission at approximately 2:45 p.m. today in a non-residential area northeast of Berlin, Ga., in Cook County.

Update: The pilot was released with minor injuries.  Public Affairs has posted pictures of the crash site.

According to the New York Times, the Obama administration has decided against allowing Taiwan to purchase new F-16C/Ds, but it will allow them to purchase the material to upgrade their existing fleet of F-16A/Bs.  Some have called this “buckling to pressure from China,” which generally criticizes military support for what it considers a breakaway state.

“If the reports are true,” Senator John Cornyn, Republican of Texas, said in a written statement on Friday, “today’s capitulation to Communist Read more…

Marc Knapp was sentenced to 46 months in prison for trying to sell an F-5 and various F-14 parts to Iran.

Prosecutors said Knapp…was motivated by both greed and a hatred of the United States. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Hall said Knapp told an undercover agent that he was starting to hate America and wanted to “level the playing field” with Iran.

Defense attorney Christopher Koyste said the statements Knapp made were “puffery.”  Read more…

General Norton Schwartz, Air Force Chief of Staff, has indicated the F-22 grounding will be lifted as of tomorrow.  The jets have been largely inactive since the fleet was grounded in May over concerns about life support systems.