The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II, also widely known by the nickname Warthog, is a single-seat, twin-turbofan, straight-wing, subsonic attack aircraft developed by Fairchild Republic for the
An A-10 of the 74th Fighter Squadron after taking on fuel over Afghanistan in 2011
By the time of the Vietnam War, the 1940s-vintage propeller-driven Skyraider was the USAF's only dedicated close air support aircraft. It was slow, vulnerable to ground fire, and relatively lightly armed.
The Lockheed AH-56 Cheyenne appeared to offer the possibility of handing much of the tactical air-to-ground role to the U.S. Army.
An A-10A of pre-glass cockpit design
GAU-8 Avenger
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The General Electric GAU-8/A Avenger is a 30 mm hydraulically driven seven-barrel Gatling-style autocannon that is primarily and most famously mounted in the United States Air Force's Fairchild Republ
Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II
…intended to improve on the performance and firepower of the Douglas A-1 Skyraider. The Thunderbolt II's airframe was designed around the high-power 30 mm GAU-8 Avenger rotary autocannon. The airframe was designed for durability, with measures such as 1,200 pounds (540 kg) of titanium armor to protect the cockpit and…
The GAU-8/A Avenger's barrel and breech assembly
GAU-8 closeup
30×173 mm round next to a .30-06 Springfield for comparison
GAU-8 mounted in A-10