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Technicians discuss a scale model of an advanced forward-swept wing configuration aircraft in a test wind tunnel at the Arnold Engineering Development Center
A mechanic with the 81st Tactical Fighter Wing conducts a post-flight inspection of one of his squadron's A-10A Thunderbolt aircraft during exercise Central Enterprise "89
Aerial view of the Aeropropulsion System Test Facility (ASTF) in the Arnold Engineering Development Center. The ASTF, presently under construction, will provide a greatly expanded advanced jet engine test capability
U.S. Air Force crew chiefs inspect an A-10 Thunderbolt
Technicians at the Arnold Engineering Development Center prepare one of three sections of a fairing that will be used to cover a payload being launched aboard a Titan IV rocket. The fairing will be tested in the center's Mark 1 space chamber before being approved for flight
A maintenance technician conducts a preflight cockpit check of an A-10A Thunderbolt aircraft during Gunsmoke '89, the Tactical Air Command's biennial air-to-ground tactical fighter gunnery competition. Exact Date Shot Unknown
At the Arnold Engineering Development Center, two engineers from General Dynamics Corporation, maker of the F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft, ready a model of the aircraft for testing in the center's 16-foot transonic wind tunnel
A civilian employee from McDonnell Douglas Corp. performs tests at the flight engineer's station aboard a KC-10A Extender aircraft
A crew chief from the 91st Tactical Fighter Squadron performs a walk-around inspection on an A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft to insure all systems are operational. The squadron is deployed to Zaragoza Air Base for weapons tactics training
An Air Force aerospace engineer at the Arnold Engineering Development Center inspects the external stores attached to a model of an A-10 Thunderbolt aircraft. Engineers at the center conduct separation tests on the external stores to ensure that, when released, the stores perform as designed
Summary
The original finding aid described this photograph as:
Base: Arnold Air Force Base
State: Tennessee (TN)
Country: United States Of America (USA)
Scene Camera Operator: SMSGT Robert Wickley
Release Status: Released to Public
Combined Military Service Digital Photographic Files
The A-10 Thunderbolt has excellent maneuverability at low airspeeds and altitude and is a highly accurate and survivable weapons-delivery platform. Called the “Warthog” for its aggressive look and often painted with teeth on the nose cone, the A-10 Thunderbolt II is the U.S. Air Force’s primary low-altitude close air support aircraft best known for its GAU-8 Avenger 30mm Gatling gun designed to fire armor-piercing depleted uranium and high explosive incendiary rounds. In the 1970s the threat of Soviet armored forces and all-weather attack operations had become more serious. Six companies submitted aircraft proposals, with Northrop and Fairchild-Republic selected to build prototypes: the YA-9A and YA-10A, respectively. General Electric and Philco-Ford were selected to build and test GAU-8 cannon prototypes. First A-10 was delivered to the U.S. Air Force on 30 March 1976. By 1984, 715 airplanes had been built.