00:00A 50 kilometre corridor of lowland valleys called the Fulda Gap where any invading troops
00:06would be channelled on their march from East Germany to West Germany. It was the shortest
00:11route to France, Frankfurt and the strategically important Rhine river. If war broke out, this
00:17corridor would be a vital region to secure and each side of the Fulda Gap was defended
00:23by armoured divisions. To cope with this threat environment, the US developed an operational
00:29doctrine called air-land battle, and the A-10 was developed as a vital component of this strategy.
00:37A low flying tank killer, which would work closely with the troops on the ground to break up enemy
00:42formations at the front, while high flying bombers harassed the supply lines at the rear. The A-10
00:49was a plane designed specifically for the role of close air support. Close air support is exactly that,
00:57close. Close to friendly forces and close to unfriendly forces. It requires a plane to be
01:03capable of absorbing a great deal of damage as they come under fire, and to be incredibly accurate
01:09with its weapons to avoid friendly fire. A plane with this role needs some unique qualities.
01:15It needs to be available at a moment's notice. In an ever evolving battlefield, troops could need
01:21support without warning, and because of this the plane needs to be nearby and ready to go.
01:26This means working from forward bases that may not necessarily have all the infrastructure and
01:32equipment that other planes need to operate. Its survivability needs to be best in class.
01:38Flying this close to the ground is going to result in every man with a weapon taking potshots at the
01:43plane. As a result, the plane needs to be capable of dealing with small arms, machine guns,
01:49anti-aircraft guns, and even missiles. A-10s frequently limped back to their base with damage
01:55so severe that they would have downed another plane. With parts of their wings ripped off,
02:00with an engine taken out and hydraulics unoperational. And coming with this,
02:05the plane needs to be simple and cheap to manufacture. The Air Force made it clear from the beginning,
02:10in a battle of cost versus performance, cost would be prioritised. In an all out war with the Soviets,
02:17quantity and ease of manufacturing was going to be a huge factor. Like the Sherman and the T-34 tanks,
02:24which were so influential in World War 2, a future war between the Soviets and the US
02:30was expected to be won by whoever could out manufacture and maintain their equipment.
02:35This plane was intended to be a cheap and rugged workhorse.
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