WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Abraham Hamadeh has begun work on his BRRRRT Act in an effort to ensure that the men and women who serve on our front lines have the most lethal close air support (CAS). The BRRRRT (Bolstering Recognition, Resurgence, Retention, and Remembrance of the Thunderbolt) Act, pronounced “Brrrrrrrrt,” will be sure to bring a smile to those warriors – past and present – who recognize the iconic sound of the A-10.
This week, at the request of President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of the Air Force this week announced that the Air Force will keep the A-10 Thunderbolt II flying through 2030. According to the military, the Air Force “plans to extend two squadrons of A-10s to 2030, one active-duty squadron at Moody AFB and one reserve squadron at Whiteman AFB.”
Congressman Hamadeh’s legislation will reinforce and extend President Trump’s 2030 timeline, increase the minimum number of A-10s in operational inventory, and support training and sustainment pipelines.
Congressman Hamadeh’s BRRRRT Act will require that once retired, some A-10s must be preserved in rapidly recoverable condition at AMARG boneyard in Arizona for future surge capacity, evaluate potential for retention in Reserve and Guard wings, and require a look at the feasibility of sale or transfer to foreign partners – including in shared sustainment arrangements.
Recognizing the A-10’s durability against generations, the bill will require a report on A-10 combat legacy, current use, and modernization outlook:
Specifically, the legislation will direct the Air Force, to submit to the congressional defense committees a report on the A-10’s combat employment from Operation Desert Storm through current operations, including lessons learned for future close air support doctrine, pilot training, weapons integration, battlefield communications, and the extent to which elements of the A-10 mission set, command-and-control methods, and air-ground integration experience may inform the development of future close air support concepts, including human-machine teaming, autonomous collaborative or adjunct aircraft employment, counter-drone, AI-enabled mission planning and targeting support, digital battlefield communications, distributed air-ground integration, and other emerging capabilities relevant to close air support and armed overwatch.
“As a former U. S. Army Intelligence officer, I know that the arrival of the A-10 creates the most beautiful sound ever heard by troops under fire on the battlefield,” stated Congressman Hamadeh, who oversees fighter platform programs on the House Armed Services Committee Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces. “For too long, the military industrial complex has pushed newer, not better, leaving our troops at risk by retiring the great Warthog. The A-10 is proof that newer isn’t always better and price has nothing to do with performance.”
Background:
As of April 2026, the U.S. is significantly increasing its A-10 Warthog presence in the Middle East, with the Pentagon doubling its deployment to at least 30+ aircraft to target Iranian-backed militias.
Despite the urgent combat use, the Air Force is moving forward with a phased retirement of the fleet, including at Davis-Monthan AFB in Arizona. Stars and Stripes reports that the “…Air Force first tried to get rid of all the A-10s in 1984, the year production ended, according to a 2015 Congressional Research Service report. Congress has repeatedly balked at Pentagon attempts to zero out the A-10, most recently last year when it proposed a one-year phase-out of the remaining 162 jets in the Air Force inventory. Congress said no and required the Air Force to maintain more than 100,” noting that the Pentagon announced that April 3rd was the final A-10 pilot graduating class. The first unit to receive the A-10, in 1976, was based at Davis-Monthan, a legacy that Congressman Hamadeh’s BRRRRT Act will honor.
