Iraq vet to float A-10 compromise measure

Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) is offering a compromise measure that would retire just half of the Air Force’s A-10 fleet, instead of all of them.

Moulton, a Marine Corps veteran and member of the House Armed Services Committee, is offering the alternative to an anticipated amendment from Rep. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) which would stave off the fleet’s retirement.

{mosads}“My amendment is a common sense approach and would authorize the retirement of 164 out of 283 total aircraft,” Moulton, who served four tours in Iraq, wrote Wednesday morning in a “Dear colleague” letter to his fellow Armed Services committee members.

“My amendment does not force the full retirement of the A-10 inventory; in fact, it keeps over 100 A-10s remaining in inventory,” he added.

The Air Force has attempted to retire its A-10 fleet in recent years to save roughly $4 billion. But many GOP lawmakers argue the service has no suitable replacement for the aircraft, dubbed the “Warthog” by service members, and have fiercely opposed the plan.

Both amendments are being offered to the 2016 national defense authorization act (NDAA). 

Moulton criticized McSally, herself a retired Air Force colonel and A-10 commander, for “narrowly” focusing “on one tool in the toolkit that the military has said they don’t want.”

He argued that the close-air support mission, which the A-10 is known for, has evolved in recent years and can be carried out by other platforms, like the B-1 bomber.

“In war, rarely are there enough resources? Regardless of whether the Department of Defense has a $10 budget or a $1 trillion dollar budget, our policymaking responsibility is the same: How do we protect our troops and maximize our military effectiveness?” Moulton asked. “Supporters of the A-10 are never able to address the issue with the tradeoffs necessary to keep the aircraft in service.”

The Armed Services Committee will address the Warthog’s future sometime Wednesday night.