A-10s may be moved in case of groundings

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A-10s may be moved in case of groundings
Wing cracks limit jets’ availability

By Bruce Rolfsen - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Oct 28, 2008 12:32:39 EDT

With more than one-third of Air Force A-10 Thunderbolts grounded because of wing cracks, the service is considering temporarily reassigning aircraft and even reassigning airmen.

The groundings began Oct. 3, when orders went out not to fly 127 jets that were built with “thin wings” until the wings had been checked and repaired, if needed. The number of grounded A-10s is likely to grow as more aircraft are inspected for cracks near the main landing gear.

Lt. Col. David Trucksa, a Warthog subject matter expert with Air Combat Command headquarters, said the full extent of the wing problems won’t be known until end of October, when inspections are completed.

But Trucksa said he doesn’t expect the problem to end soon.

“It will be a long time — a year,” he said. “It’s not short-term like the F-15 Eagle.”

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