{"id":48800,"date":"2026-04-07T19:01:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T19:01:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/usa\/sandy-a-10s-the-air-force-says-it-no-longer-needs-flew-close-in-gunfights-in-high-risk-iran-rescues\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T19:01:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T19:01:22","slug":"sandy-a-10s-the-air-force-says-it-no-longer-needs-flew-close-in-gunfights-in-high-risk-iran-rescues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/usa\/sandy-a-10s-the-air-force-says-it-no-longer-needs-flew-close-in-gunfights-in-high-risk-iran-rescues\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Sandy&#8217; A-10s the Air Force says it no longer needs flew &#8216;close-in gunfights&#8217; in high-risk Iran rescues"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/69d533aecc468aeec524c96a?format=jpeg\" alt=\"A-10 Warthog flying behind a refueling aircraft in the skies above Iran.\"\/><figcaption>A task force including A-10s protected the rescue aircraft flying to pick up the downed F-15E pilot in Iran.<\/p>\n<p>US Air Force photo<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>US Air Force A-10 Warthogs were part of the rescue operation for downed airmen in Iran.<\/li>\n<li>The A-10s were in a &quot;Sandy&quot; role supporting search and rescue.<\/li>\n<li>The Air Force has pushed for the retirement of its A-10 fleet, deeming them obsolete.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>US Air Force A-10 Warthogs, decades-old attack aircraft the service has been pushing into retirement, were part of the risky rescue missions to retrieve downed American airmen in Iran.<\/p>\n<p>The Warthogs flew in their &quot;Sandy&quot; roles, supporting search and rescue while engaging inclose-in battles at low altitudes. The rescue marks the latest involvement of the A-10 in the US war in Iran despite the Air Force&#039;s plans to imminently shelve its remaining fleet.<\/p>\n<p>Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, shared details on the aircraft used in the mission during a Monday briefing on the rescue of the pilot and weapon systems officer after an F-15E Strike Eagle was shot down over Iran last week.<\/p>\n<p>Caine said that a task force including A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft, commonly called Warthogs, &quot;audaciously penetrated enemy territory in broad daylight&quot; to rescue the F-15E pilot. &quot;This was an incredibly dangerous mission,&quot; he added, sharing the task force faced Iranian fire while locating and retrieving the downed pilot.<\/p>\n<p>In the operation, the A-10s, along with other aircraft, including drones, flew in so-called &quot;Sandy&quot; roles, &quot;violently suppressing and engaging the enemy in a close-in gunfight&quot; to draw attention away from the rescue activities, as well as keep the enemy at bay.<\/p>\n<p>During the engagement, one A-10 aircraft was hit by enemy fire. The pilot flew itinto friendly airspace but determined that they wouldn&#039;t be able to land it. The pilot ejected as the plane went down. They were recovered safely.<\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/69bbf73f75bee4e0ee55df3a?format=jpeg\" alt=\"A US A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft flying in the Middle East\"\/><figcaption>The Air Force has deemed the A-10s ineffective in a potential future war with China.<\/p>\n<p>US Air Force photo<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&quot;A &#039;Sandy&#039; has one mission: get to the survivor, bring the rescue force forward, and put themselves between that survivor on the ground and the enemy,&quot; Caine said.<\/p>\n<p>The &quot;Sandy&quot; role originated during the Vietnam War as the call sign for A-1 Skyraiders leading combat search-and-rescue missions. These aircraft located downed airmen, coordinated rescue efforts, and suppressed enemy fire to protect helicopters.<\/p>\n<p>As the A-1 retired, the Sandy role \u2014 a mission, not a platform \u2014 passed to aircraft like the A-10 Warthog.<\/p>\n<p>These \u201cSandy&quot; aircraft are part of the larger CSAR package, which includes HH-60 helicopters and highly trained rescue personnel, HC-130 refueling tankers, fighter escorts, and intelligence, reconnaissance, and surveillance assets.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;The A-10 force and the rescue force did a fantastic job,&quot; Caine said Monday. Earlier in the war, the top general highlighted the involvement of Warthogs in hunting down Iranian fast-attack boats in the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n<p>The A-10&#039;s days are, however, numbered. The Air Force is planning the aircraft&#039;s retirement, though it has run into roadblocks. Congressional intervention has repeatedly thrown the attack plane a lifeline and prevented the service from fully retiring the entire fleet.There are over 160 Warthogs in service.<\/p>\n<p>Pushing for the retirement of the fleet, Air Force leadership has previously argued that &quot;the aircraft does not deter or survive against our pacing challenge,&quot; a reference to China. The service has been looking into whether F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters can fulfill the A-10&#039;s missions, such as close-air support. Supporters of the A-10 argue no other aircraft can currently fulfill its missions.<\/p>\n<p>The A-10 was introduced in the 1970s and intended to be a tank-killer capable of blunting a Soviet armored assault. It can carry rockets, missiles, and bombs, but is best known for its 30mm GAU-8 Avenger seven-barrel Gatling-style autocannon.<\/p>\n<p>Read the original article on Business Insider<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A task force including A-10s protected the rescue aircraft flying to pick up the downed F-15E pilot in Iran. US Air Force photo US Air Force A-10 Warthogs were part of the rescue operation for downed airmen in Iran. The A-10s were in a &quot;Sandy&quot; role supporting search and rescue. The Air Force has pushed [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":48801,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-48800","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-usa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48800","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48800"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48800\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48801"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48800"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48800"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48800"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}