Warbird Information Exchange

I spotted this on article from Aero-News.net. about building new A-10 "Thunderbolt II" wings. I was wondering if anyone had any information on the effort that it took to accomplish building the new wings. I imagine that Fairchild discarded all the tooling and jigs and Boeing has had to design and build new ones.


Thunderbolts Receive Wing Modification
Sun, 27 Dec '09

Mods Will Double Service Life, Allow The Airplane To Carry Additional Load
The A-10 Thunderbolt II will continue flying close-ground-support missions for the next two decades because of a reinforcement process wing replacement specialists call "Hog Up."

The phrase originated about a decade ago during an upgrade of the aircraft's avionics system, partially because of the A-10's "Warthog" nickname. Specialists in the 309th Maintenance Wing's Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base and Hill Air Force Base, Utah, install steel straps and stronger fittings to the wings that give the A-10 an additional 8,000 flying hours and extend the life of the aircraft for another 20 years, said Dave Roe, a 309th AMARG structural engineer.

"The modifications we're giving the wing will double its service life and allow it to carry the additional load the wings are expected to carry," Mr. Roe said. "By putting on these additional straps, we're basically beefing up the structure."

The A-10 is a twin-engine jet aircraft designed for close-air support of ground forces. Its main use is for ground attack against tanks, armored vehicles and installations. The aircraft flies with a range of 800 miles and with high endurance and maneuverability at low speeds and altitudes that allow accurate targeting and weapon delivery.

"Nothing else in our inventory can do the job the A-10 can do, especially in close-ground support," Mr. Roe said. "It also has a long loiter time over friendlies or over the target if necessary."

The reinforcements are intended to keep the A-10 fleet flying until the aircraft receives new wings through a contract awarded to Boeing in 2007. The contract calls for 242 new wings for installment on the thin-skinned A-10 airframes by 2011. About 100 A-10 airframes won't need new wings because they were built with a stronger "thick-skin" structure in the 1980s. Thick-skinned A-10s were rated for 16,000 flying hours, which should keep them flying until about 2030. The original A-10s were rated for 8,000 hours, but were extended with depot repairs in the 1990s. The new wings should also keep the original A-10s flying through the next 20 years.

"This is an interim fix to keep the A-10s flying while the new wings are being built," said Daryl Neel, the 309th AMARG center wing shop supervisor.

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I guess I'm kind of confused, hogs have been getting new wings in Greenville, S.C. for years now. It's not a new program. and with the avionics upgrades you have the A-10C, all weather night attack, and the best thing going in afghanistan right now.

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The design of the wing was undertaken in Long Beach and St. Louis from the original blueprints which were converted into 3D models. The known problem areas were redesigned during the process. I think the new wings are being built in St. Louis or perhaps Macon with all new tooling.

The design work was probably completed about a year ago, not sure if any have been delivered yet.