A-10's
Maybe some of you pilots out there can correct a former KC-135 Nav on this, but as I wrote in reply to the post on the C-130's, under VFR rules I remember being able to go down to 500' over unpopulated areas and 1500' over populated areas. I remember this from having done "flybys" in our Tanker for a number of airshows. Over water; low population, you can go right down to just above the water. Circumstances and airspace restrictions come into play, but as a general rule, military aircraft are certainly allowed to go pretty low. I bet those low flying A-10's are fully complying with the rules. To someone on the ground it may seem like they are just playing - and you're probably right - but it is all legal and it may just be the Squadron Commander yankin' and bankn' down low.
As an aside, the Warthog sure is slow. Dragging them across the Atlantic on a deployment seemed to take twice as long as when we refueled the go-fast jets. It was amazing how quickly those fighter pilots became your best friend over the middle of the pond when you have all the gas!
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