Ground attack: Air Force seeks to upgrade close air support fleet.

• Author: Kennedy, Harold

As the Iraqi and Afghan conflicts evolve essentially into ground wars--with U.S. and coalition infantry units fighting small bands of guerrilla fighters--the Air Force is moving to improve its ability to provide close air support, according to the service's top officials.

The Air Force is developing new tactics, equipment and organizational structures to conduct CAS operations. The aging A/OA-10 Thunderbolt II--the first Air Force aircraft designed especially for close air support--is getting upgraded precision-strike technology. The aircraft comes in two versions. The A-10 actually attacks enemy ground troops, while the OA-10 variant performs airborne forward air control.

To replace the A/OA-10 in future CAS missions, the service has decided to acquire the short-takeoff, vertical-landing version of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, which is still under development.

In 2003, Air Force aircraft flew more than 10,000 CAS sorties in Iraq and Afghanistan the two countries, The effectiveness of those CAS missions "was unprecedented," said Lt. Gen. William S. Wallace, former chief of the U.S. Army V Corps. "None of my commanders complained about [its] availability, responsiveness or effectiveness."

CAS was a key factor in the rapid destruction of enemy ground forces in both wars, U.S. military leaders said. Thirty days "after operations began in Afghanistan in 2001, U.S. and coalition troops were able to enter Kabul, and within 26 days of fighting in Iraq, they captured the last major Iraqi city, Gen. Michael Moseley, Air Force vice chief of staff, told the House Armed Services Committee.

In the battle for Baghdad, U.S. military officials put together an innovative, complex plan for urban CAS. Moseley said. Airborne forward air controllers flew over the city 24 hours a day, assigning missions to multiple sets of fighter aircraft stacked up in the air nearby.

In the stack was a mix of Air Force, Navy and Marine fighters, including A/OA-10s, F-15 Eagles, F-16 Fighting Falcons, F-14 Tomcats and F-18 Hornets.

Under this scenario, a ground commander receiving CAS "may be working with a Marine in an F-18 or Navy crew in an F-14 or an Air Force pilot in an A-10," Moseley said. You wont know the difference. You'll just know the call sign and the location."

In addition to fighters, CAS is provided by AH-64 Apache and AH-1W Cobra helicopters and AC-130 gunships. With the development of precision-guided munitions, long-range bomber--B-1 Lancers, B-2 Spirits and B-52 Stratofortresses--are conducting CAS missions from high above the battlefield. "CAS from 40,000 feet is truly...