EXCLUSIVE IMAGES War Preparations: 4 US Fighter Jets Escort $4,000,000,000 Submarine

Two images caught the imagination of people on the Internet. It is the first time that 4 fighter jets escorting a US submarine appear in public space. A steamboat is also seen nearby, a regular presence.

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The footage appears to be from a US war exercise about which not much is known.

EXCLUSIVE IMAGES War Preparations: 4 US Fighter Jets Escort $4,000,000,000 Submarine

Four US Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II “Warthog” jets made an unusual appearance. The four “Tank Killer” planes were seen escorting the US Navy’s Ohio-class ballistic submarine USS Nebraska.

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The mission of the Warthogs was not clear, but photos of the quartet of A-10s hovering over the USS Nebraska on social media generated buzz. The images were posted on social media by the commander of Submarine Group 9 at Kitsap Naval Base in Washington state.

An A-10 costs $18,000,000

-USS Nebraska (SSBN-739) is the 14th Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine and the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Nebraska, the 37th state. She carries Trident ballistic missiles. It costs $4,000,000,000.

Image shows USS Nebraska and her escort transiting the San Juan de Fuca Strait, the Salish Sea’s main outlet to the Pacific Ocean, on May 6.

Nebraska is one of 14 US Navy Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), also known as “boomers,” that make up America’s maritime nuclear deterrent. The Navy has four other Ohios converted to conventionally armed guided missile submarines (SSGN).

The Air Force plans to retire all A-10s within the next five to six years. Its rapid bursts, seven barrels firing 65 rounds per second, turned “an enemy soldier’s intestines into water.”

The main reason for the aircraft’s retirement is that, despite its close air support role in Iraq and Afghanistan, the slow-flying, low-altitude A-10 would not survive against modern air defenses such as China’s.

To support future conflicts, the US Army needs versatile aircraft capable of multiple roles. Combatant commands have not actively requested the A-10, and the Air Force considers it a “single-mission aircraft.”

Planes firing 65 rounds per second

Therefore, the latest images of the unusual association between the A-10 and the USS Nebraska are causing intrigue. In the photos, four A-10s, along with a war support ship, specially armed with an automatic cannon on its bow, are seen escorting the submarine. Ships are a common form of protection when strategic submarines come and go from their home ports. But the A-10 is not.

The post of the commander of Submarine Group 9 read: “Yesterday, the Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine USS Nebraska (SSBN 739) transited the Strait of San Juan de Fuca, escorted by US Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft and US Coast Guard control escort vessels.

Joint operations like this one involving the Air Force, Coast Guard and Navy ensure the U.S. military is prepared to meet its security commitments at home and abroad, including commitments to our allies and partners.”

In previous training exercises, the A-10s were deployed to target swarms of boats and strike small naval vessels using their exceptional capabilities. Boomers are likely to encounter just these kinds of asymmetric risks as they travel across the ocean surface.

The A-10s will be replaced by Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightening II multirole fighter. But every pilot who has flown the A-10 makes a strong case for the aircraft’s craftsmanship. They say the Warthog is easy to fly and has a greater ability to stay in the air that the F-35 will always lack.