Afghan officials seek return of American
A-10s
By: Shawn Snow
WASHINGTON — America’s beloved A-10 Thunderbolt II ―the
“Warthog” ― may be headed back to Afghanistan, Military Times has learned.
A senior Afghan defense official told Military Times that
the Afghan government wants the aircraft to return. However, discussions to
bring the A-10 to Afghanistan are in early stages, and no decision to bring the
aircraft back into theater has been made.
“The discussions of what forces we move to Afghanistan or
drawdown from Iraq and Syria are all ongoing,” Air Force Brig. Gen. Lance
Bunch, director of U.S. air operations in Afghanistan, told reporters at the
Pentagon. “We have not made any decisions at this time to move A-10s,that I
know of.”
As operations against ISIS in Iraq and Syria wind down,
other air assets may be flexed to Afghanistan. In recent months, six additional
F-16s and a KC-135 Stratotanker have bolstered U.S. air assets in the country.
There are currently 18 F-16s in country, according to a Pentagon official.
A-10s have been vital to U.S. operations against ISIS in
Iraq and Syria. Deployed to Incirlik Air Base, Turkey, the 74th Fighter
Squadron has dealt punishing blows to ISIS fighters in support of U.S.-backed
Kurdish fighters known as the Syrian Democratic Forces.
But those operations are beginning to wane after the
October liberation of Raqqa, ISIS’ self-proclaimed capital.
Those assets may now be needed in Afghanistan where the
U.S. has launched an air campaign targeting Taliban commanders and their
revenue streams under authorities granted as part of the Trump administration’s
new South Asia strategy.
Roughly 25 Taliban narcotics labs in northern Helmand
province have been destroyed since mid-November, denying the Taliban nearly $16
million in revenue, according to Bunch.
“It’s not over, in
fact it’s just begun,” Bunch said about the new air campaign targeting Taliban
financing operations.
As part of new strategy, more U.S. forces, may find
themselves in harm’s way as American advisers begin to embed with Afghan forces
at a more tactical level.
The Army’s new 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade is
expected to deploy troops this March. The new unit specializes in training and
advising partner nation forces. Its deployment means more U.S. troops will be
in the field with Afghan forces, outside the protection afforded by larger U.S.
military bases.
With that, U.S. commanders will need to employ more
combat enablers to assist advisers on the ground, which may translate into more
combat aircraft to provide close-air support for troops downrange.
“So these advisers will operate in teams,” Gen. John Nicholson,
the commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, told reporters at a Pentagon
briefing in late November. “We will move these teams to those units that are
conducting offensive operations, and then those teams will be backed up by U.S.
combat enablers, not only for the protection of our own force but for the
support of the Afghans as well.”
The A-10 has a storied history in Afghanistan, and is
idolized by troops who have witnessed the aircraft in action against the
Taliban. Its 30mm cannon has delivered thousands of deadly gun runs against
Taliban militants and saved the lives of countless American and coalition
troops.
Its relatively low cost to operate, and its ability to
maneuver at low speeds and altitude, have made the Warthog a prominent asset in
America’s low-tech counterinsurgency conflicts.
The A-10 has been in service for more than 40 years and
may remain in service for the foreseeable future. This year’s defense policy
bill authorizes funding to upgrade the aircraft’s wings, but the appropriations
bill, which would provide the money for the project, is still being negotiated
on Capitol Hill.
“I happen to be kind-of a fan of the A-10 myself,”
Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson told lawmakers in December.
Original post: marinecorpstimes.com
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