A-10: Like a zombie, back from the dead!!!

[Denis]

Apparently two courteous warnings were not enough.

This thread is locked.

If Aesop or Jericho941 would care to contact me or another moderator privately to explain what part of

If you wish to continue your discussion, please do so like adults: lay off the acrimony, and tone down the hyperbole.

they failed to comprehend, and to offer a rational explanation for their continued vitriol other than a sudden inexplicable attack of mutual cranio-rectal insertion syndrome, I might not also delete all their posts herein for the good of posterity.

[Denis]

Now let's see if a little cooling-off period has done any good.

Thanks mostly to the good offices of a non-combatant who found the discussion interesting, I am going to unlock this thread, in the FIRM expectation that any further discourse will remain civil...

[Netpackrat]

I was kind of enjoying watching them beat up on each other, and besides, the entire thread was worth it just for the picture of the orca nailing the seal. Speaking as one who had his bacon saved from sea lions by a pod of orcas.

[Rich]

I kinda enjoyed it too. Perhaps we ought have a separate category for epic arguments.

For the record, my introduction to both the F-15A and the A-10A was at an Air Show while stationed at Luke AFB. They first introduced the F-15 (A model) which then did the obligatory zoom passes, then the A-10 which demonstrated flying low and slow for the CAS mission. What blew me away was that same F-15 glued to the A-10's wing.

That was the day I fell in love with the Eagle.

I like the A-10.

I love the Eagle.

[Termite]

...... the entire thread was worth it just for the picture of the orca nailing the seal. Speaking as one who had his bacon saved from sea lions by a pod of orcas.

Dude,
We want to hear about that. Inquiring minds want to know.......

[Netpackrat]

...... the entire thread was worth it just for the picture of the orca nailing the seal. Speaking as one who had his bacon saved from sea lions by a pod of orcas.

Dude,
We want to hear about that. Inquiring minds want to know.......

I know I have posted about it here, at one of our previous forums, and elsewhere. Google turned up the following that I posted elsewhere:

Well, there were 3 of us in this little skiff, returning to the boat after some successful deer hunting on Montague island. The skiff had moved pretty well on the way out, but loaded down with the 3 of us, our gear, and our deer (limit was 4 per that year, and we limited out that trip), it was pretty slow going. And I didn't realize it at the time, but there was a very small leak so we were taking on a small amount of water slowly. And we were pretty rank, given what 10-12 dead deer smell like (keep in mind that Sitka Blacktails are pretty small). So, it was a matter of time before we attracted the attention of a bunch of sea lions.

Sea lions are quite big and they are very dangerous. And this group was following us, and getting ever nearer as we plodded along at our maximum speed. Lifting themselves up out of the water occasionally as they will do, in order to get a better look and smell. The two of us not running the boat, had positioned ourselves to cover the rear with our rifles, had gone safeties off, and it looked as though having to shoot would be inevitable (The "beach" in this area was very rocky, and not suitable for grounding). About that time I happened to glance over my left shoulder, and saw a big, black dorsal fin bearing down on us from the front. It looked like we were well and truly phucked. And then the pod of orcas tore on past, paying no attention whatsoever to us, our boat, or our cargo, and straight into the sea lions. It was just about the most beautiful sight I had ever seen.

The rest of the trip back was uneventful. We could have very easily ended up capsized and wound up as crab bait, or as a better outcome, in the position of having to explain some dead sea lions to the federal authorities, who tend to take a dim view of such things.

[Denis]

Now that was a story worth unlocking the thread for, NPR. Never saw it before!

Here's a paddler getting a close look at an Orca: https://youtu.be/Vaq4pHxM5P4

[JustinR]

That is a good story, thanks for sharing.

[Aesop]

1) Quite simply, I missed the penalty flags, in amongst everything else. Mea culpa.
2) Happy to keep it civil, and just about all of the points I made were verified in that Wings episode from the misty beyond of 1995 I linked to in the (previously) penultimate post.
3) Thanks for unlocking the thread. Before the furball, the main point was simply that an airplane with no equal that's been put on the chopping block by the USAF has been rescued by wiser heads. For at least the third time in its service life. I took that as a good thing. It was not intended as dropping a hat to start a gunfight.
4) I liked the orca story too. But if anyone starts to argue their angle of attack or teeth penetration, y'all are on your own.

[D5CAV]

A10s would sometimes practice over our training areas, which was good training both ways. We would practice hiding from them and they would practice hunting us.

One day I was in the middle of crossing an open field when a pair showed up, so I just told the driver to stop. I figured the loader and I could enjoy our own private 2 minute air show. The A10s obliged.

On 2 passes, they came in at very high angles of attack and were under 2000' AGL. The third pass started further out and was shallower, so I though "what the hell" and powered the turret.

I said "gunner, sabot, 2 jets, right jet", raised the gun to the highest elevation and swung the turret to the lead A10. My gunner quickly twitched the gun slightly and came back with "identified", so I said "fire!". About a second later, the gunner said "on the way!"

After that pass, the A10s gave us a nice 500' AGL flyby, wagged their wings and left.

I congratulated my gunner on tracking such fast movers. He said, "it wasn't so hard. The target wasn't really moving, it was just getting bigger."

He was quite confident that he could have put a 70mm tungsten dart right through that titanium bathtub.