All this talk of the A10 being vulnerable. All aircraft are vulnerable down in the weeds but the A10 has had a very low loss ratio due mainly to it's strong airframe. Armoured cockpit. High position engines and built in redundancy. I seem to recall many during Desert Storm coming home with substantial parts missing.
On the flip side the A10 is much feared and can kill anything on the ground so be careful not to get in it's sights. It also can kill in the air with two air kills.
The problem the Americans face is air combat over a very hostile environment with no good guys below to assist or provide support. Shades of Vietnam for sure.