Part of the charm of the 49-year-old A-10 Thunderbolt II close-air support aircraft is undoubtedly its unapologetically analog operation and design. From its leisurely cruising pace of about 340 miles per hour with its twin-turbofan engines to its 30mm GAU-8 Gatling gun that delivers the beloved “BRRRT” war cry, the A-10 offers something close to the opposite of the sleek stealth of today’s highly developed aircraft.
But a provision in the version of next year’s defense budget passed by the House could test out loading up the A-10 with the latest in emerging technologies. Specifically, an amendment in the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act would require the Secretary of the Air Force to develop a plan for “competitive experimentation” with the A-10 mission set.
According to legislation, the experimentation plan would include an operational assessment of “autonomous, semi-autonomous, artificial intelligence-enabled, and adjunct aircraft capabilities” to match or expand upon what the A-10 is able to do.
It’s not entirely clear if the core of the plan, which was added to the NDAA by Rep. Abe Hamadeh (AZ-R), is to develop a tech-loaded future aircraft platform that can match the A-10’s capabilities, or to evolve and refit the A-10 itself for another era of warfighting. Staff with his office did not immediately respond to questions from Sandboxx News.
What is clear, through the NDAA provisions and a separate bill Hamadeh has introduced, known as the “BRRRT Act,” is that Congress would be prohibited from retiring the A-10 until every military branch has certified that its capabilities can be fully replaced in other forms.
While the A-10 is best known for close air support, it has also played vital roles in combat search and rescue, scooping up downed troops in danger.
As years-long calls to save the A-10 from the longtime threat of retirement have seen a resurgence, new legislative language seems targeted at expanding the aircraft’s usefulness on a changing battlefield.
The experimentation plan, according to the bill, should include chances for a variety of industry players to participate, including nontraditional defense contractors and experts in autonomy and other technical capabilities.
The plan must also consider how to allocate a “limited number” of A-10s for experimentation and research and development work, specifically including “autonomous or semi-autonomous aircraft integration, mission systems development, digital battlefield communications, or other related capabilities.”
The A-10 has seen a few key moments in the spotlight in recent years, for example when it reportedly downed a drone in the Middle East in late 2025.
Those advocating to keep the aircraft in service – whose numbers now include Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, say the U.S. has no dedicated close air support platform that could fill the gap left by retiring the aircraft.
“The A-10 has repeatedly proven itself on the battlefield, saving American lives and delivering unmatched close air support when our troops need it most,” Hamadeh said in a statement. “The BRRRRT Act ensures we do not retire a proven weapons system before a certified replacement exists. This is about common sense, national security, and keeping faith with the men and women who depend on the A-10 in combat.”
However, there are others who say the demands of combat have moved on and left the A-10 behind.
Related: A-10 gets new adapter to resolve a unique refueling problem
In 2024, retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Lee Levy, former supervisor of the retired aircraft “boneyard” at Arizona’s Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, told Sandboxx News that the A-10 was built for a kind of warfare that’s less common today.
“We [needed] something to fly low and slow and just shoot tons and tons of Russian tanks,” Levy said at the time. “That’s not the universe we live in now.”
It often makes more sense, he added, for close air support to be performed today by other aircraft, including bombers, better able to protect themselves. That said, as A-10 boosters will point out, the crews of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, while capable of executing close air support among other missions, haven’t trained on it. Clear gaps do remain in the mission set handoff.
In addition to ordering new experimentation, the NDAA and the BRRRRT Act would prohibit the Air Force from divesting the A-10 through 2033 – despite retirement plans already in motion that have included the shutdown, earlier this year, of the main A-10 training squadron at Davis-Monthan. The act would also require the Air Force to keep 126 A-10s in inventory – prohibiting any from being retired – and to stand back up and reconstitute training and maintenance centers and other A-10 sustainment operations that have already been divested.
Moreover, the bills would require the branch to rebuild an A-10 demonstration team to “preserve and showcase the heritage of the A–10 community and the A–10 mission set” while bolstering patriotism and pride in American airpower. The original A-10 demo team, also headquartered at Davis-Monthan, wrapped its last performances in 2024.
The congressional budget office has yet to announce a price tag for the BRRRRT Act, but aviation experts note that the A-10 is only getting pricier to keep in the air as it gets older.
Feature Image: A pair of A-10 Thunderbolts. (U.S. Air Force)
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