Force Structure: Preliminary Observations on Air Force A-10 Divestment

Abstract : In March 2014, as part of the President s Budget for Fiscal Year 2015, the Air Force proposed divesting its fleet of A-10 fighter aircraft as one of the steps it would take to address fiscal constraints. One of the A-10 s primary missions is providing close air support (CAS) to friendly forces, a mission to which the Air Force says it will remain committed. According to the Air Force, recommending A-10 divestment was a difficult choice but the best one available under the circumstances, allowing the Air Force to preserve multirole platforms, readiness, and future capabilities. Section 133 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015 included a provision for GAO to conduct an independent study of the platforms used to conduct the CAS mission in light of the recommendation of the Air Force to retire the A-10 fleet.1 This report provides preliminary observations on (1) the process that led to the Air Force s decision to divest the A-10 and consider alternatives; (2) the extent to which the Air Force analyzed the cost savings from the A-10 divestment proposal and alternatives; and (3) the extent to which the A-10 divestment creates gaps in CAS and other missions, and Department of Defense (DOD) plans to address any gaps that may have been created. This report is the unclassified version of the classified report also issued in June 2015. DOD deemed some of the information in the prior report as classified, which must be protected from public disclosure. Therefore, this report omits certain information about military plans or operations, vulnerabilities or capabilities of systems or infrastructures, and plans relating to the national security of the United States. Although the information provided in this report is more limited in scope, it addresses the same questions as the classified report. Also, the overall methodology used for both reports is the same.