Ep 584: The A-10 Refuses to Die - Won Bier
Ep 584: The A-10 Refuses to Die - Won Bier  
Podcast: Ones Ready
Published On: Fri May 08 2026
Description: Send us Fan MailPeaches sits down with legendary A-10 attack pilot "Won" Bier—and this one is equal parts war stories, aviation nerd-out, and straight-up calling BS on billion-dollar defense decisions.Fresh off Operation Epic Fury, with A-10s once again doing what everybody swore other platforms could “totally replace,” Won breaks down what Sandy missions, combat search and rescue, and real close air support actually look like when people’s lives are on the line. Then it gets spicy.Why is the Air Force “saving” the A-10… with no real funding behind it? Why is AFSOC dropping billions on aircraft nobody asked for? And why do the people actually getting shot at still keep asking for the Hog?Won doesn’t sugarcoat it—budgets, politics, ego, procurement… it’s all in the blast radius.Bottom line: every time they try to kill the Hog… reality drags it right back into the fight.⏱️ Timestamps: 00:00 "Won" Bier Is Back 02:00 Retirement… Kind Of 04:00 Watching Epic Fury From the Sidelines 06:00 Dude 4-4 & Why Sandy Matters 09:00 What a Sandy Actually Does 13:00 Rescue Mission Commander Explained 17:00 Why the A-10 Was Built for This 22:00 Mark One Eyeball Beats Screens 26:00 Why Other Fighters Struggle Here 31:00 The A-10 “Extension” Is Smoke 35:00 Saved… But Not Funded? 39:00 The Pilot Manning Problem 43:00 Why Parts Are About to Hurt 46:00 OA-1K—Who Asked for This? 51:00 $40M Crop Duster?! 55:00 Why JTACs Still Want the Hog 58:00 High-Low Mix Is Dead 01:02:00 World War II Lessons Still Matter 01:05:00 Final Thought—Save the Sandy🎯 Call-to-Actions: 👍 Like if the Hog still belongs in the fight 🔔 Subscribe for real operator conversations 💬 Comment—keep the A-10 or move on? 🌟 Leave a review if this one hit home 🪖 Join the Ones Ready Membership 👕 Check out onesready.com for merchSupport the showJoin this channel to get access to perks: HEREBuzzsprout Subscription page:  HERERegister for our Operator Training Summit:  OperatorTrainingSummit.comFind an Air Force Recruiter: AirForce.comCollabs:Ones Ready - OnesReady.com 18A Fitness - Promo Code:  ONESREADY ATACLete - Follow the URL (no promo code):  ATACLeteDanger Close Apparel - Promo Code:  ONESREADYDFND Apparel...