Which combat aircraft was designed around a cannon?

Short answer

The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II: its airframe was designed around the 30mm rotary automatic GAU-8 Avenger cannon. The complete weapon, with feed system and drum, weighs 4,029 lb (1,828 kg) with maximum ammunition load, and the assembly accounts for about 17% of the aircraft's empty weight.

Published: November 2, 2026 · Updated: November 2, 2026 · Edited by Above Ten Thousand · Editorial policy

Which combat aircraft was designed around a cannon?

Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II in flightAndrew Basterfield (CC BY SA), vía commons

An aircraft around its cannon

The aircraft designed around a cannon is the Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II. Its airframe was conceived around the GAU-8 Avenger, a heavy rotary automatic 30mm cannon. The complete assembly, properly designated the A/A 49E-6 Gun System, equals about 17% of the aircraft's empty weight.

How much the GAU-8 weighs and how it fires

The cannon alone weighs 620 lb (280 kg). The complete weapon, with its feed system and drum, reaches 4,029 lb (1,828 kg) with maximum ammunition load. Its rate of fire had two settings: 2,100 rounds per minute on low and 4,200 on high. One of its rounds, the PGU-14/B, carries a lightweight cast aluminum body around a smaller-caliber depleted uranium penetrator core.

From the YA-10 to the production aircraft

The two YA-10 prototypes were built at Republic's Farmingdale, New York plant and first flew on 10 May 1972, with pilot Howard "Sam" Nelson at the controls. After trials and a direct competition against the YA-9, the USAF announced on 18 January 1973 that the YA-10 had been selected for production.