Su-25 Love

[SDirickson]

How can you not love flyin the Frogfoot? Its simplicity at its best, no cumberson MFD's or intricate weapon systems. Just simple steam gauges and point and shoot weapons.

 

All you folks out there who cry about loving the Hog for its quirks, I'll take my Frog any day.

 

Though I would go for an Avenger under the hood.

[GhostDog]

lovely plane it is

[ARCHER]

salute yes like the su 25 nice bird

 

actually the real counterpart of the A-10 was the Il-102

but the su company won the contract =su25 and onward.

 

 

heres some stories on how tuff the su 25 is,

 

Here are few more stories highlighting Su-25 roughness:

 

-Major Rubalov's Su-25 was hit in the engine which surged and flooded an engine bay with fuel, the cockpit was shattered, buster controls are gone and major's face covered with blood. None of the dials in the cockpit worked and his wingman guided him to the final approach. After belly landing, major rushed away from the Su-25 fearing that plane going to explode. After figuring that this is not going to happen, he got back to the aircraft and cut the engine.

 

-Another Su-25 was on fire which burned out most of the wiring and 95% of horizontal tail controls. In few moments before the landing, fire short cut the gear release wires and Su-25 made "conventional" landing.

 

-Lieutenant Golubtsov's Su-25 lost half of its rudder along with breaks. After landing his a/c ended up off runaway and rolled into adjacent mine field. He was forced to wait in the cockpit till mine squad cleared his way out.

 

-One Su-25 brought a missile in the engine which failed to detonate. (SAM?)

 

-Rutskoi's Su-25 was hit by AAA (ZGU) when a missile (Blowpipe) hit right engine (head on - it "turned off" the engine though the intake). Second AAA finally managed to shot it down. This is a second Frogfoot he flew (not the preproduction T-8-15 Blue 15 which was damaged twice). Rutskoi spent some time as Pakistani POW and was shortly exchanged.

 

:D

Edited June 17, 2004 by ARCHER

[SDirickson]

I've always like the A-9 prototype tested against the A-10. It had a link system between the rudder and the clamshell aileron speed brakes that allowed it to slide sidewise. By applying full rudder in one direction to create the slide, and then opening up the brake on the opposite wing to counteract the yaw, they planned for pilots to be able keep the plane pointed straight yet still track moving vehicles on the ground.

 

It wasn't that bad looking an aircraft either, but it definately reflects the era it was designed. I doubt the Air Force would still have A-10's in the inventory if they looked as dated as the A-9. The A-10's unique appearence at least sets it apart from its contemporaries.