Russian Su-25SM3 Vs United States A10C Thunderbolt II

The Russian Su-25SM3 and the United States’ A10C Thunderbolt II are heavily modernized versions of the Su-25 and A10 Thunderbolt II developed as ground-attack aircraft in the late 1960s.

World War II established the requirements for ground attack aircraft such as A10 and Su-25: armored aircraft, capable of high speed, maneuverable and agile at low speeds and altitudes, equipped with multiple machine guns and bombs.

The United States in 1967 began developing the A-10 Thunderbolt II, a tank killer armed with a Gatling gun to rip open Soviet armor rolling down European plains to protect its western allies.

Two years later, Soviet Union launched Shturmovik (Stormer/Attacker) Project to build a fighter capable of taking out a variety of targets with ease: the Su-25 Frogfoot.

Defenseworld.net checks out if these modernized ground attack aircraft, which have changed little in basic configuration, are relevant in the current networked warfare environment.