Key Points and Summary – The U.S. Air Force is accelerating the retirement of the iconic A-10 “Warthog,” with the entire fleet now expected to be phased out by 2027.
-The White House’s 2026 budget request allocates funds to complete the process, which began in 2023.
-While the A-10 has a long and celebrated history of providing close air support, its design is optimized for low-altitude, slow-speed missions.
-This makes it dangerously vulnerable against modern, peer adversaries like China that possess advanced air defense systems, prompting the shift to more versatile and survivable platforms like the F-35.
The A-10 Warthog Is Going to Be Retired
The United States Air Force is moving forward with plans to retire the A-10 Thunderbolt II, a close air support attack aircraft developed by Fairchild Republic that was introduced in October 1977.
The single-seat subsonic attack aircraft, better known as the “Warthog,” was designed to provide support to ground forces by attacking enemy armor, vehicles, artillery, and fortified positions at low altitude and relatively slow speed.
Despite its age, however, the Warthog remains in service – although it could be entirely phased out by 2027.
In June, the White House’s 2026 fiscal year budget request included a $57 million provision to support the planned retirement of the 162 remaining Warthogs in use by the U.S. Air Force, according to a report by Flight Global.
Citing senior Pentagon officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity, the outlet confirmed that efforts to phase out the Warthog have been going on since 2023, and that the project is now expected to wrap up in less than two years.
The new timeline brings forward the full retirement of the platform by as much as two years. During the Biden administration, the A-10 was expected to be retired by 2029 at the latest.
Since his return to the White House in January, however, President Donald Trump has sought to phase out older military hardware more quickly, simultaneously replacing aging platforms with proven, current-generation aircraft and investing in next-generation aircraft programs like NGAD and the F/A-XX.
The White House’s decision to speed up the A-10’s retirement likely reflects this reality – and finally puts an end to years of delays.
In early 2016, the U.S. Air Force indefinitely froze its planned retirement of the A-10 after the aircraft demonstrated effectiveness against ISIS in Iraq and Syria.
Why It’s Being Retired
The A-10’s retirement should come as no surprise. While the platform has proven capable over the years, having been deployed in Afghanistan and the Gulf War, it is an aging system that cannot compete with modern platforms.
Its design, which is optimized for slow, low-altitude missions, makes it vulnerable in future combat scenarios against peer adversaries like China, equipped with advanced air defense systems. Its slow maximum airspeed and limited survivability in environments like this make it too dangerous to use.
The Air Force plans to replace the A-10 with modern and more versatile platforms like the F-15EX and F-35, which are better suited for future operations.
In November, 2024, the U.S. Air Force announced that the A-10 would be retired in key regions, including South Korea, by fiscal year 2025 – making room for fourth- and fifth-generation fighter jets.
And I was lucky enough to visit one this weekend, and that’s where the picture above comes from.
About the Author:
Jack Buckby is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York who writes frequently for National Security Journal. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments’ approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society. His latest book is The Truth Teller: RFK Jr. and the Case for a Post-Partisan Presidency.
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Andrew O'Neill
August 28, 2025 at 8:14 pm
I thought they just put new wings on these aircraft? They should see if they can be of use to allies like the Philippines or Taiwan. They may still be useful for defense against scenarios such as beach invasion/landings, providing that air superiority can be achieved inland.