Hogs at Risk

The Air Force on Friday announced it would be inspecting some 130 A-10 Warthogs following “an increase in fatigue-related wing cracks.” The action affects A-10s with thin-skin wings assigned to Air Combat Command, Air Force Materiel Command, Pacific Air Forces, the Air National Guard, and Air Force Reserve Command. The service has a program in place to replace the thin-skin wings installed during original manufacture, but the announcement said, “Taking immediate action is necessary for the safety of our aircrews and to bring our A-10 fleet back to health.” The service plans to place “priority focus” on those aircraft currently in Southwest Asia.