YA-10B

Fairchild Republic Company’s two-place night and adverse-weather A-10 began flight tests at the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB in May 1979. Fairchild converted it from one of six pre-production single-place A-10s built in 1975 into a two-seat adverse-weather configuration, with the pilot assisted by a weapons officer in the back seat. Its key features included low-altitude navigation and accurate visual weapons delivery at night and in adverse weather. The A-10 could deliver up to eight tons of ordnance per sortie to destroy enemy armor and suppress hostile anti-aircraft missiles. It was 53.4 feet long, had a ceiling of 45,000 feet, a span of 57 feet 6 inches, a range of 800 miles or 695 nautical miles, a height of 15 feet 7 inches, a maximum takeoff weight of 49,500 pounds, and a speed of 420 miles per hour, or Mach 0.56.

Edwards AFB, California · United States