piperarcherpilot
Charter Member
Heres what he responded with. That was quick:
Hi ,
You asked about speed and performance of the A-10. Vne for the A-10 is 450 KIAS. The mach limit is .75. However, we're discouraged from going above 420 kts, and honestly that really doesnt happen much in normal operations. This is due to the unswept wing and keeping tip speeds low. It doesnt matter if the plane has external stores, the Vne does not change. However, with a full load of weapons, the maximum attainable speed WILL change dramatically. I'd say normal operational maxium speed in level 1 G flight with a CLEAN airplane would be around 350 to 360 KIAS. With full external stores, it would drop to 310-320 KIAS. Things that change this are altitude, external store config changes (parasite drag), weight (fuel) and ambient air temperature. ANd then there are limitations put on the aircraft's operational limitations (including airspeed) with the loss of flight systems and when running on backups. Turn rate is excellent (=15 degrees per second or better), but the instantaneous rate is much better than sustained. The thick wing creates so much induced drag with high G loadings that even at full power the engines cannot produce enough thrust to hold on to airspeed through a max performance turn. It's been said that if you enter a max performance turn (AOA limiter just below 28 units) at 300 KIAS, you'll be down to a dangerous airspeed (and effectively stalled) after just two 360 degree turns. Energy management is VERY important, as you can see. But its a wonderful plane to fly, and solid as a rock.
Anyway, thats probably more than you wanted to know. I hope that answers your questions.
Scott
I also found this: http://www.fas.org/man//dod-101/sys/ac/docs/11oa10v3.pdf
Kinda interesting...
Hi ,
You asked about speed and performance of the A-10. Vne for the A-10 is 450 KIAS. The mach limit is .75. However, we're discouraged from going above 420 kts, and honestly that really doesnt happen much in normal operations. This is due to the unswept wing and keeping tip speeds low. It doesnt matter if the plane has external stores, the Vne does not change. However, with a full load of weapons, the maximum attainable speed WILL change dramatically. I'd say normal operational maxium speed in level 1 G flight with a CLEAN airplane would be around 350 to 360 KIAS. With full external stores, it would drop to 310-320 KIAS. Things that change this are altitude, external store config changes (parasite drag), weight (fuel) and ambient air temperature. ANd then there are limitations put on the aircraft's operational limitations (including airspeed) with the loss of flight systems and when running on backups. Turn rate is excellent (=15 degrees per second or better), but the instantaneous rate is much better than sustained. The thick wing creates so much induced drag with high G loadings that even at full power the engines cannot produce enough thrust to hold on to airspeed through a max performance turn. It's been said that if you enter a max performance turn (AOA limiter just below 28 units) at 300 KIAS, you'll be down to a dangerous airspeed (and effectively stalled) after just two 360 degree turns. Energy management is VERY important, as you can see. But its a wonderful plane to fly, and solid as a rock.
Anyway, thats probably more than you wanted to know. I hope that answers your questions.
Scott
I also found this: http://www.fas.org/man//dod-101/sys/ac/docs/11oa10v3.pdf
Kinda interesting...
