Hasegawa 1/72 Republic A-10C Thunderbolt II (The Warthog)

The A-10 Thunderbolt II, affectionately known as the Warthog to its pilots, first entered service in 1977. It was designed for the Close Air Support role, flying in low and slow to destroy enemy tanks and positions threatening troops on the ground. The aircraft was built around the GAU-8A rotating cannon. This deadly armament fires 2100-4200 rounds per minute, each round a little bigger than a soda bottle. The firing of the cannon creates a staccato sound, usually written as “BRRRRRRT!!!”.

The aircraft was designed to operate even after taking on heavy damage and has extra armour to protect the pilot from ground fire.

The A-10 has seen action in the Gulf War, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria. In addition to its deadly cannon, the underwing loadouts can include Sidewinder missiles, bombs, and Maverick missiles.

This is the Hasegawa kit of the A-10C in 1/72 scale.

Here are the sprues — fairly straightforward.

Built the cockpit and used the decals for the instrument panels.

Putting the fueselage together and adding the wings.  Fit was pretty good.  I put as many lead pellets as I could fit into the nose, but alas, it was not enough to prevent the model from being a tail-dragger, so I had to put a little toothpick in the back to keep the nose down.

Added the engines.

Always fun, here are the loadouts.  A fuel tank, Maverick missiles, laser guided bombs, air-to-air Sidewinders, and some general purpose bombs.

The basic airframe is assembled,  time for some paint.  As always, lots of fun masking the canopy.  

These are the GAU-8/A pieces.   Not much considering how important this is to the overall aircraft.  Is it worth a 3rd party metal part for this?  That possibly costs as much as the model itself?

Light grey for the upper part.

Went with flat white for the lower part.

Ready for decals after applying Future floor polish using an airbrush.  

Decals are on, now we need to add the Tamiya flat coat to dull the finish.  Used an airbrush and diluted it quite a bit with rubbing alcohol.  

Overall the kit was very good.  Nice fit and no major problems, other than the nose requires a LOT of weight to keep it down.  

Paints

Tamiya Acrylic

XF-2 Flat White
XF-19 Sky Grey
XF-20 Medium Grey
XF-54 Dark Sea Grey
XF-66 Light Grey
XF-67 NATO Green
XF-86 Flat Clear
X-1 Gloss Black
X-2 Gloss White
X-10 Gun Metal
X-11 Chrome Silver