A10s at Battle of Hoth

[Picard]

A flight of 4 A10s is transported to Hoth a five months before Imperial attack, along with pilots, enough fuel and ammo.

Will Rebels be able to operate them? What impact will they have on course of battle?

[Praeothmin]

While they will decimate the AT-STs, one hit from AT-AT guns and they're toast...
So, not much impact... :)

[Trinoya]

Presuming the A-10 can function in the extreme cold of hoth (which during the day battle it should be able to), even without modification by the rebels the A-10s should, in theory, obliterate the imperial forces since they can attack from an angle they can't defend against.

One of the limitations of the snow speeders was they couldn't penetrate the armor, but we've seen them obliterate them on their upper armor in just a few shots. The A-10 should likewise have little trouble, especially considering the concept of 'armor' in the SW universe with the AT-ST.

[Khas]

Well, considering that the A-10's primary weapon is a Gatling gun that fires depleted uranium shells, I don't think it'll have too much of a problem getting through the AT-ATs' armor.

[Praeothmin]

Well, considering that the A-10's primary weapon is a Gatling gun that fires depleted uranium shells, I don't think it'll have too much of a problem getting through the AT-ATs' armor.

How do you figure that?
While I agree the AT-ST is a joke, the AT-AT's armor seems pretty sturdy...

[Khas]

Well, it's just that when a fighter's primary weapons are armor-piercing rounds fired Gatling Gun-style, most things tend to go down pretty quickly.

Not to mention the design of the AT-AT really prevents it from being used against fighters that fly high above it.

[Praeothmin]

Well, the side guns on an AT-AT's head do seem to be able to rotate up or down, so they could possibly track them...
But I have to admit I didn't really consider all the variables, such as how a simple bomb dropped in front of an AT-AT's leading foot could topple it easily...

[Khas]

And that's not even counting the A-10's Air-To-Surface missiles. 57 to 135 kg warheads.

[Picard]

And fact that A10s are way faster, meaning they will be able to attack from angle of their choosing.

And, BTW, I believe A10's cannon can pierce 69 mm of RHA in a single burst.

[Praeothmin]

Yeah, their angle of attack will allow them to attack from up high, and from the rear, which the Rebels didn't do, and their missiles will kill some AT-ATs, but I still doubt their bullets can penetrate the AT-AT's armor...

[Khas]

Even if the bullets couldn't, the missiles almost certainly would.

Edit: Weren't there only four AT-ATs at the Battle of Hoth, though?

[Praeothmin]

Hhhmm, not sure, but didn't wee see at least five or six?

[Picard]

I remember seeing only three or four.

[Trinoya]

If I remember correctly a snow speeder crashed into an AT-AT (destroying it) and another one, when able to hit its upper armor obliterated it. I think the main gun will do just fine.

The AT-AT was a weapon of fear, not practicality. It's sad that her predecessors were far more practical (and awesome).

[Praeothmin]

The AT-AT was a weapon of fear, not practicality. It's sad that her predecessors were far more practical (and awesome).

I hope you're not thinking of the AT-TE, which can get blown up by hand weapons (YES, I am exagerating a bit, but only a bit)...