After initial trials with the Beechcraft AT-6 Wolverine, the Sierra Nevada/Embraer A-29 Super Tucano, the Textron Scorpion jet, and the L-3/Air Tractor AT-802L Longsword at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, Secretary of the Air Force Heather Wilson told reporters that combat trials were a likely next step in the OA-X light attack demonstration program. Wilson did say that combat trials were predicated on combat commanders approving the aircraft for use in an operational setting, but that's probably a low bar for the AT-6 and A-29, both of which the Air Force has deemed "tier one" competitors for having met all the Air Force's initial specifications. The Air Force already operates those two aircraft or a close variant thereof. The Beechcraft AT-6 Wolverine is closely related to the T-6 Texan II used by both the Navy and Air Force for primary pilot training and is itself closely derived from the Pilatus PC-9. The Air Force's 81st Fighter Squadron at Moody Air Force Base trains Afghan pilots to fly the Super Tucano. Afghan pilots then fly the same airplane on counterterrorism combat missions back home.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.avweb.com/recent-updates/business-military/air-force-oa-x-trials-likely-moving-to-battlefield