WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. -- Like a fine wine, the A-10 seems to get better with age.
Brought into the Air Force inventory in 1975, the A-10 has gone through a host of upgrades, making it the scourge of enemy ground forces and the airborne weapon of choice for U.S. and coalition ground troops.
The latest upgrade to the 442nd Fighter Wing's A-10s is installing "smart" multifunction color display data-link systems in the cockpit. SMFCD systems make the battle-tested aircraft more lethal by improving communications and awareness for pilots.
The upgraded A-10s are known as the A-10 A-plus models.
Air Force Reserve Command's 442nd FW began installing the systems in September 2006 and wrapped up the task in early February. The last of the wing's 27 aircraft, recently gained from the Arkansas Air National Guard's 188th FW, is going to Barksdale AFB, La., for the installation.
The upgrades come just in time as the wing prepares for its third deployment to Afghanistan later this year.
The Airmen of the 442nd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron's Specialist Flight, working with a contract team to do the installations, patiently made their way through a maze of mechanical and electronic unknowns. They agreed their efforts were crucial for the future of the A-10 and for their own expertise.
"This is a new system," said Maj. Travis Caughlin, deputy commander of the 442nd Maintenance Group. "It's really crucial to the capability of the aircraft. (The flight's Airmen) clearly like what they do .... It's impressive to watch it."
The specialist flight's ingenuity and patience has benefited not only the wing, but other A-10 units. As problems and questions arose and were worked out, their findings and troubleshooting procedures were written down by the system manufacturer's representatives to help other units when they meet the same obstacles.
"We couldn't do this without the technical abilities of our workforce," said Senior Master Sgt. Dennis Lyon, flight chief. "It's been a baptism by fire. If there were issues, it was sometimes something you looked at initially and thought, 'I don't know if we can get there from here.'"
But they did get from "there" to "here" and everyone, especially pilots, will reap the benefits.
"This increases our combat capability," said Capt. Brian Leiter, chief of mission planning for the 303rd Fighter Squadron. "It brings us more into the 21st century.
"This (system) integrates our navigational system, our bombing computer, our targeting pod and our heads-up display to work together to more effectively target the enemy," he said.
"At Hill, they'll pick up another multifunction display system," he said. "There'll be changes in weapons delivery characteristics and in avionics systems. They'll totally redo the cockpit display. There'll be digital versus analog displays. They'll be able to drop GPS-guided bombs, and there's a missile-warning system."
"It's never ending," said Sergeant Lyon. "It's a continuous upgrade to the aircraft to improve its ability to fight and survive. Every time you turn around, there's another upgrade to keep the A-10 flying.
"Our operations tempo isn't getting any slower," Sergeant Lyon said. "But we'll continue to produce what we need to and do it safely and correctly. We're going to press on with pride."
Major Caughlin said the A-10s give comfort to U.S. and coalition ground troops but instill fear in the enemy.
"Soldiers and Marines really like that support close in," he said. "The B-52s can do close air support with JDAMs (joint direct attack munitions), but that doesn't give ground troops the same sense of security they have with the A-10. The show of force it brings and the psychological impact it makes can't be underestimated." (Air Force Reserve Command News Service)