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“Communication problem can delay bomb run….”

November 13, 2006 on 8:39 am | In Articles |

  Air Force upgrading A-10s to digital radios

By Scott Schonauer, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Sunday, November 12, 2006

SPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, Germany — A-10 pilots flying close-air support missions over Iraq and Afghanistan will soon no longer have to deal with a potentially risky problem because the planes there are getting a critical radio upgrade.

The single-seat, twin-engine plane designed to protect ground troops has been a workhorse in both countries. But pilots have had to operate with old radios that can cut off a transmission if both the pilot and controller do not pause for three to five seconds before transmitting.

This month, crews began installing more reliable digital radios for those planes flying over Afghanistan and Iraq, Maj. Don Henry, Air Combat Command’s chief of A-10 modernization, told Stars and Stripes on Thursday.

A timetable for upgrades for the rest of the “Warthog” fleet is uncertain because of wartime budget shortages. More than 82 percent of the service’s 356 A-10s will remain without the radios until the Air Force receives $60 million needed to upgrade the rest of the fleet.

Although A-10 pilots have dealt with the outdated radios for years, the situation came to public attention when Air Combat Command put out a surprising press release last month about the lack of funding for new radios.

The article, posted on the command’s official Web site, called the older technology “a high risk to ground support operations.” But last week, Air Force officials downplayed the potential risk.

The Oct. 12 release was originally titled “AF to bypass critical A-10 upgrades, budget to blame,” but it now appears online with the headline “A-10 radio upgrades limited to deployed aircraft.”

“So far, it has not been an issue in terms of fratricide or risks in that sense,” Henry said. “Honestly, the fact that it’s been around so long and has not been an issue is really a tribute to our pilots and maintenance folks in the field.”

The problem with the old, line-of-sight radios happens when pilots switch to a secure mode.

A synchronization problem requires pilots in the A-10s and troops calling in airstrikes on the ground to turn on their microphones and then wait as long as five seconds. If the pilot or ground controller does not pause before speaking, the transmission can be cut or not heard at all.

The communication problem can delay a bombing run for less than a minute, but seconds can be critically important to troops on the ground when they’re in the middle of an intense firefight and need help from above.

Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany is home to the sole U.S. A-10 squadron permanently based in Europe. When the 81st Fighter Squadron deployed to Afghanistan earlier this year, it used the older radios.

A-10 pilot Capt. Steve Sztan said he encountered “multiple cases” in which a radio transmission was cut or was not received at all as he waited for permission to drop bombs.

Pilots need clearance before releasing a weapon to ensure friendly forces are not in the way. The radio problem can be overcome, but Sztan said it requires impeccable teamwork under stressful situations.

“It is a question and answer, checks and balance between me in the air and the guy on the ground to make sure we kill the right people,” Sztan said. “So, if I don’t hear the right things, then I’m going to question him. If he doesn’t hear the right things out of me, he needs to question me. So, we work together as a team.”

The radio problem also is known widely by controllers, but Sztan said pilots constantly had to remind them to pause before talking.

“Sometimes you do have to go back and forth and say, ‘Umm, I didn’t hear that. Don’t forget to wait two seconds,’” he said.

Providing close air support for ground force requires little margin of error in places such as Afghanistan and Iraq, where fighting between coalition forces an insurgents can be extremely close.

A Sept. 4 friendly fire incident in which an 81st A-10 pilot accidentally killed a Canadian soldier and injured dozens of others in Afghanistan illustrates the risk. U.S. and Canadian officers are investigating the cause.

The October press release said the transmission delay could also expose pilots to ground threats.

“The extra synchronization time also means the pilot remains exposed to air and ground threats that affect the war fighter’s ability to ensure friendly forces are out of harm’s way,” it said.

Air Force officials said they are confident they will get the money needed to replace the radios, but last month’s release was part of an effort to be “proactive” in asking for the funding.

While Henry said the older radios could put pilots and ground forces at greater risk, he added, “I think it is somewhat of a mischaracterization to say that folks are at risk right now and they’re going to die.”