The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is a single-seat, twin-turbofan, straight-wing, subsonic attack aircraft developed by Fairchild Republic for the United States Air Force (USAF). In service since 1977, it is named after the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, but is commonly referred to as the "Warthog" or simply "Hog". The A-10 was designed to provide close air support (CAS) to friendly ground troops by attacking armored vehicles, tanks, and other enemy ground forces; it is the only production-built aircraft designed solely for CAS to have served with the U.S. Air Force. Its secondary mission is to direct other aircraft in attacks on ground targets, a role called forward air controller-airborne; aircraft used primarily in this role are designated OA-10.
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
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Fairchild was an American aircraft and aerospace manufacturing company based at various times in Farmingdale, New York; Hagerstown, Maryland; and San Antonio, Texas.
The Jamaica, New York Fairchild plant in 1941.
The Western Canada Aviation Museum's Fairchild 71C
1944 model Fairchild 24 Argus III