OV-10 vs ISIS
03-12-2016, 11:27 PM
#12
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: May 2006
Posts: 2,889
Everyone loves the Bronco. It looks cool. Its fun to watch at airshows. Watching jumpers tumble out the back of one that does a low pass over the runway then pulls up into the vertical is fun.
Combat? Well....I think Desert Storm answered that. One squadron deployed, and had two planes lost to MANPADs. Three POWs, and 1 KIA. Yep...the plane is cheaper to operate than an A-10, but at what price? Remember the parade of bruised and beaten faces on TV during Desert Storm? That's what we will see a lot of when you put slow moving antiques into a battle against a capable threat.
I flew the OV10 for two years. Loved it, and was a bitter man when we got deployed as Ground FACS vice Air FACs to Desert Storm. The after action review indicates maybe that was a smart choice after all. The Marine Ds were more capable than our As, but were still shot down.
Had a friend who bailed out of when he lost an engine while in New Mexico. As T-38 above mentioned, the single engine ceiling is pretty much N/A. The airplane is not build to ditch, and while it is STOL that performance comes from engines pushing air over the wings. Its a miserable glider, and off airport landings were not recommended.
Would I enjoy shooting rockets with flechettes at ISIS positions? Who wouldn't? The reality, however is that canopy is plexiglass, and history has proven getting into gunfights with AAA kills attack pilots. The Air Force removed the guns from the sponsons for this very reason.
There is an aircraft well suited for a FAC-A mission. It also has a "10" in its name. The NAIL FACS also lost at least 2 in Desert Storm, but they were in position to do some pretty good damage to the bad guys. The OV-10 might be suitable, but eventually an SA-7 or -16 is going to show up and ruin someone's day. And then we'll be sending in bigger iron and trying to rescue a POW somewhere.
If someone wants to resurrect a past plane, then go find some Skyraiders. Google Bernie Fisher for a profile of a man's man....
Combat? Well....I think Desert Storm answered that. One squadron deployed, and had two planes lost to MANPADs. Three POWs, and 1 KIA. Yep...the plane is cheaper to operate than an A-10, but at what price? Remember the parade of bruised and beaten faces on TV during Desert Storm? That's what we will see a lot of when you put slow moving antiques into a battle against a capable threat.
I flew the OV10 for two years. Loved it, and was a bitter man when we got deployed as Ground FACS vice Air FACs to Desert Storm. The after action review indicates maybe that was a smart choice after all. The Marine Ds were more capable than our As, but were still shot down.
Had a friend who bailed out of when he lost an engine while in New Mexico. As T-38 above mentioned, the single engine ceiling is pretty much N/A. The airplane is not build to ditch, and while it is STOL that performance comes from engines pushing air over the wings. Its a miserable glider, and off airport landings were not recommended.
Would I enjoy shooting rockets with flechettes at ISIS positions? Who wouldn't? The reality, however is that canopy is plexiglass, and history has proven getting into gunfights with AAA kills attack pilots. The Air Force removed the guns from the sponsons for this very reason.
There is an aircraft well suited for a FAC-A mission. It also has a "10" in its name. The NAIL FACS also lost at least 2 in Desert Storm, but they were in position to do some pretty good damage to the bad guys. The OV-10 might be suitable, but eventually an SA-7 or -16 is going to show up and ruin someone's day. And then we'll be sending in bigger iron and trying to rescue a POW somewhere.
If someone wants to resurrect a past plane, then go find some Skyraiders. Google Bernie Fisher for a profile of a man's man....
03-13-2016, 07:03 AM
#14
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Mar 2008
Position: FAA 'Flight Check'
Posts: 13,839
Just came across this article:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/article...ight-isis.html
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