US to deploy JDAM equipped Super Tucanos...

[Wiley]

Let's see... cheap and cheerful airframe relatively easy to operate and maintain and not likely to cause any imbalance in regional air power stakes should its eventual operator not remain on what I'll call "our" side.

My guess would be that after initial introduction in theatre, they'll be handed over to the Afghans.

[L J R]

The Reaper has JDAM already, and no one needs to be in it!

The North Spin - News: JDAM Adds Precision Punch to the Reaper

[Nate26]

This is a limited program to lease some airplanes for a few specific customers. The A10 aint commin' back. Fairchild has long since shuttered their doors and Boeing wants to sell new airplanes, not parts for someone elses airplane. The OV-10 died the slow death because in order to get enough to do anything with one of the services would have to give up the sexy jets to get more of the ignoble prop planes. That of course means less money to boot. So which branch will be first in line to cut thier prestige and budget? Surprisingly there are no takers

Of course there is the US Army, but they cant get their head out of their collective buts long enough to get a new ARH when no one is trying to stop them. Their is no way the USAF would let them get another fix wing with ordinance, hell the USAF just back-doored them on the Spartan intra-theater transport!

[Yeoman_dai]

Defense Tech: COIN Air Force on its Way

Dedicated COIN Wing to be formed. Good idea?

[kharmael]

Single pilot Firefly260 with cannon of some variety?

Anyone?

[Gravelbelly]

Except.... this rather interesting PPT would seem to indicate that the Tucanos are being bought as a much cheaper way to expand FAC training (because a lot more people suddenly need it), rather than as an armed asset for use in theatre.

USN Irregular Warfare presentation (pdf)

It doesn't appear to be a bid to field a dedicated COIN aircraft; any more than No.1 PTS using Skyvan was a bit to introduce light AT.

Sorry to disappoint the "spads and hogs and big guns R k3wl" crowd...

[melmothtw]

"Flying over a 'normal' enemies territory with a single engine is one thing, flying of the Talebans is a bit different."

The Harriers managed it for 5 years (and still do if you count the USMC)

[orca]

GPMG

JFH flew for five years in theatre on one engine, our USMC brethren still do so.

[Muppet Show]

CAS' comments on this are interesting:

RUSI Lord Trenchard Lecture

This level of adaptability is provided by the Tornado’s innate design and configuration concept, which highlights the dangers of relying on more limited, niche capabilities, narrowly configured for one type of warfare. For example, it has been argued that a small, turbo-prop, aircraft would provide a cheap attack capability in Afghanistan. But its utility, and arguably survivability, would be markedly reduced in comparison with fast jets, such as the Tornado and Typhoon, because of increased vulnerability to less sophisticated enemy weapon systems, their reduced speed would limit response across the battlespace, and their more limited weaponry options and payload would reduce the deliverable effect at the precise time and place they were most needed. More importantly though, any such aircraft could not be used in other sorts of conflict with any confidence in their survival, such as when our Tornados and Harriers were called upon to operate against highly effective and integrated air defence systems in the Balkans and Iraq. Our relatively small size means that we simply cannot afford to implement specialized procurement strategies that establish force elements that are appropriate only for one sort of operation; the risk is that we end up equipped to fight the last operation or war and not the next.