OV-10's are in use supporting SOCOM, the USMC will need an equivalent!

Thanks to Pete for the link!

via Daily Mail

Two vintage planes used in Vietnam were brought out of retirement to help US special forces in Iraq.
A pair of OV-10 Broncos completed 120 combat missions over the Middle East between May and September last year, it has been revealed.
They are believed to have been used for 82 days as cover for troops who were on the ground fighting ISIS militants.

Central Command would not confirm where the aircraft were based or what strongholds they attacked but did say they were involved in Operation Inherent Resolve, according to the Daily Beast.

This isn't exactly news.  We've heard about the OV-10 being rebuilt for SOCOM use for awhile now.  The acknowledgement that they've flown combat missions is a revelation though.

The USMC will probably need an equivalent.  The F-35 is going to be crazy expense (already is crazy expensive) to operate and we will see a serious downgrade in capability when more effective legacy planes are retired to make room for it.

A modern OV-10D ++ might come in handy.