For Iran to win, all they have to do is survive and maintain an ability to commit terror attacks. Thus far, the US has failed to end Iran’s ability to hit Israel, hit gulf states, hit US bases, and stop shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
The MQ-9 Reaper drone was great when the enemy didn’t have anti-air capabilities, but when they do, the slow, loud, and radar-visible drone is easily shot down.
The A-10 can do one thing really well–blowing up stuff on the ground. But, it can’t do much else, and is only brought in after the most threatening air-to-air threats are destroyed or suppressed. The military would prefer to have more general and advanced craft than one with such a narrow use. Congress has kept it alive because it is popular and gives their constituents jobs. A major advantage of the A-10 is its cheaper to fire.
“While the expansive aboveground complex has drawn most of the attention, Trump revealed during a recent Cabinet meeting that there was another motivation for the construction.
He told Cabinet members there was a national security component to the project that was “supposed to be secret” and the military “wanted it more than anybody.”
“It was supposed to be secret, but it became unsecret because of people that are really unpatriotic saying things,” he said.
Shuffling through renderings of the project, Trump described the underground facility as having bulletproof glass and “drone-proof” roofs and ceilings.”
“In internal deliberations before the war’s launch, Hegseth had pointed to Iran’s muted reaction to Trump’s past attacks as evidence that calibrated force could impose costs on Tehran without triggering a broader war. Hegseth “was caught off guard. There’s no question,” says a person familiar with his thinking.”
If this is true, it is the height of incompetency. The US and Israeli attacks were not limited, they assassinated the leader of the country! The most likely response from Iran would be huge. Yet, the Trump administration seemed to have not expected this.
“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has taken steps to block or delay promotions for more than a dozen Black and female senior officers across all four branches of the military, some of whom are seen as having been targeted because of their race, gender or perceived affiliation with Biden administration policies or officials”
“The new grenade, called the M111, becomes the Army’s choice for urban combat, when troops must clear indoor areas to take and hold territory…
It’s the first new grenade introduced for US forces since 1968
…The use of shock waves, or blast overpressure (BOP), kills or disables enemies with the force of the explosion, vaporizing the weapon’s plastic outer shell.
Troops outside an enclosed area can throw the new grenade into that area, and enemies cannot take cover behind interior walls, furniture or appliances that shrapnel may not be able pierce, the military said.”