A 10 Warthog

Being used with success

A-10 Impact in Afghanistan

In Afghanistan, one of the mosteffective aircraft weapons has been the 30mm automatic cannon carriedby the A-10 aircraft. Stationed outside of Kabul, the A-10s average about 18 sorties (each nearly four hours long) a day. Several times amonth, an A-10 will be called on to apply some precision firepower withit’s 30mm cannon. For these missions, high-explosive/incendiary roundsare used. Pilots are very accurate with the cannon, and it is the preferred weapon when the bad guys are operating close to civilians.
At other times, the aircraft drops laser guided bombs, or fires rockets atground targets. Because the A-10 has armor, and is designed to fly close to the ground, the aircraft often does scouting in support offriendly ground forces. In fact, most of the sorties are scouting missions, because the A-10s can most quickly get to the scene of arecent Taliban attack.
The mere sight of the A-10 usually sends the Taliban fleeing. Actually, the knowledge that an A-10 can be overheadin an hour or so is something Taliban raiding parties have to take into account. The A-10s usually operate in pairs, making them even more effective for searching and fighting.