Chicki Posted February 1, 2021 Share Posted February 1, 2021 Hey guys. Just wondering. What percentage of missions flown by A10's in Desert Storm were night missions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunnar81 Posted February 1, 2021 Share Posted February 1, 2021 Sorry I can't give you more of a firm answer, but in the book 'Desert Storm Air War' there are several references to the A-10 pilots having a difficult time at night due to the NVG's they used being limited in the early '90's and the fact that the only way they could acquire targets was using the AGM-65D seeker infrared seeker head as a poor mans FLIR which was like looking at the battlefield through a straw. Maybe some one more knowledgeable can help, or there are some better books on the subject I haven't read but I would think the majority of their missions would have been day time attack. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicki Posted February 2, 2021 Author Share Posted February 2, 2021 Yeah, it's funny. Tons of stats but nothing about time of day. Seems kinda strange. Whatever. Thanks for the reply bud. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yurgon Posted February 2, 2021 Share Posted February 2, 2021 As I recall it, "Warthog: Flying the A-10 in the Gulf War" by William L. Smallwood has some chapters dedicated to this topic. Off the top of my head, at least one squadron was asked to prepare for night missions, which left the pilots puzzled because the A-10A at the time wasn't equipped for night flying at all and NVGs were in short supply, and possibly not even certified for use in the Hog. But with lots of preparation, the pilots came to appreciate the night missions. While they were certainly still very much visible on Iraqi radars, they would be as stealthy as it gets in any other regard. Pilots also learned that the "soda straw" Mav seeker that Gunnar81 mentioned was extremely efficient at night, allowing these A-10s to find lots of targets of opportunity. I'm sorry I don't recall the number of night missions, but I highly recommend that book, which will probably shed more light on the topic. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicki Posted February 28, 2021 Author Share Posted February 28, 2021 Yes, I do have that book....somewhere. Have to dig it up again. Excellent read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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