Ukrainian President Zelenskyy wants A-10 ground attack aircraft in his fight against Vladimir Putin. In a strictly military sense, there is a bit of logic behind the request. The Warthog refuses to die in the US military for one simple reason: It’s a wonderful ground attack airplane, and we don’t have anything remotely close to replacing it. It can loiter near the battlefield, fly low and slow, and then pop up to take out ground targets. It does a wonderful job of protecting its pilot with a titanium “bathtub.” And it carries a lot of powerful weapons. In short, it’s a Swiss Army Knife that terrifies the enemy.

There’s another side to the A-10. It’s a twin jet, and that raises questions about fuel efficiency and maintenance. Yes, it can “take a lickin’ and keep on tickin’,” but can Ukraine keep it in the air? How long will it take them to get their pilots up to speed with such a complex jet? Is there an alternative for them? Actually, there are excellent and, may I suggest, superior alternatives for the war in Ukraine.

Before I go on, please don’t accuse me of taking sides on the supply/don’t supply argument. I appreciate both positions. But if we’re going to send military toys to our current buddy, shouldn’t they be the most capable and cost-effective for breaking things and killing people? After all, the purpose of fighting a war is to win, not to make your military manufacturers rich so they can give you large campaign donations, isn’t it? (Do you really want me to answer that question?)

Image: The Iomax Archangel by Julian Herzog. CC BY 4.0.

Air Tractor, a Texas aircraft manufacturer, is well known for building crop dusters. They are extremely rugged, powerful airborne bug bombers that operate from almost any semi-flat short surface. Their turboprop engines are quieter than turbojets with much better fuel economy. And they are stone-simple to operate. As pilots say, they are “stick and rudder” airplanes that are extremely rugged and pilot-friendly. That’s why L3-Harris thought up the AT-802U Sky Warden.

With some extra protection for the pilot and goodies for military tasks, the Air Tractor crop duster becomes an inexpensive (relative to A-10s) and highly capable ground attack airplane that any crop duster pilot in Ukraine already knows how to fly. It’s easy to fly in the unstable air close to the ground and highly maneuverable for repeated passes against the enemy.

Another company that builds rugged and capable crop dusters is Thrush in Georgia. Its plane is beautifully ugly, like the Air Tractor, and shares most of its key characteristics. It’s also a turboprop that any Ukrainian pilot can fly and, like its competitor, many fly in country. Iomax, in North Carolina, converts the Thrush 710P into a close-attack variant called the Archangel. Its capabilities are similar to the Sky Warden.

Since these aircraft are not high-dollar sexy jets, it’s likely that few in the procurement chain, from the President on down, are even aware of them. But at an all-up cost on the order of $5 million, we can buy multiples of them for the price of a single A-10. And they will be usable the day they arrive because Ukrainian pilots are already flying them for agricultural purposes. On top of that, the supply chain is robust and global, meaning maintenance is simple.

Both planes can be maintained and flown in austere forward areas because they only need a short patch of road for a runway. They pack a punch and can provide a very quick response for ground troops in need of some help. Could that be why Russia is reportedly reactivating some of its An-2 cropduster/ground attack airplanes?

Ted Noel MD is a retired Anesthesiologist/Intensivist who podcasts and posts on social media as DoctorTed and @vidzette. His DoctorTed podcasts are available on many podcast channels.