The OV-10 Bronco has been an icon of Philippine counter‑insurgency operations for more than three decades. Pilots and ground commanders learned to exploit its low speed, long loiter time, and rugged simplicity to provide close air support in terrain and cities where faster jets struggled to deliver accurate effects. That operational niche is now shrinking as sustainment problems, modernization choices, and new turboprop platforms converge to push the Bronco toward retirement.
The operational story is simple for a working pilot. The OV-10 was designed to see the battlefield at low altitude and low speed, to stay on station, to mark targets for troops, and to drop ordnance with a human in the loop. In 2017 those traits were exactly what Philippine commanders needed during urban fights in Marawi where Broncos conducted strikes and supported ground clearing. The type excelled where persistence and expendability mattered more than speed.
But capability alone does not keep an aircraft flying. Maintenance and spares do. The PAF has grappled with an aging Bronco fleet for years. Plans to sustain and even extend service life through transfers and upgrades have repeatedly run into funding and logistics challenges. Proposals to take additional airframes and spare lots from foreign stocks were discussed, but those efforts stalled or were cancelled, leaving the PAF to cannibalize airframes and prioritize the few serviceable Broncos. Independent reporting and defence trackers have repeatedly warned that without a steady supply of parts the Bronco fleet would not be sustainable into the mid 2020s.
Operational transition has already begun. The PAF took delivery of A-29B Super Tucano turboprops under the Horizon modernization program and inducted those aircraft into the 15th Strike Wing. The Super Tucano fills many of the Bronco roles with modern sensors, a factory sustainment chain, and a purpose built logistics tail. That transfer of capability reduces the imperative to keep airframes that are expensive to support and risky to fly on high tempo operations. The PAF turnover and ceremony for the A-29s made clear that the service sees the Super Tucano as the long term CAS and light attack solution.
From a pilot and squadron leader perspective the transition brings both relief and risk. Relief because crews and maintainers are moving onto an aircraft with a modern support pipeline. Risk because fleet size matters. Six A-29s replace, but do not fully equal, the numbers and distribution you get from a larger, mixed inventory. If the Bronco fleet is pared back faster than additional A-29s can be bought and fielded, the PAF could face gaps in persistent close air support, forward air control, and surveillance coverage in remote areas. That is an operational risk planners must manage now, not later.
There are practical ways to manage the drawdown while preserving combat readiness. First, prioritize transition training. Move experienced OV-10 pilots into A-29 transition instructor roles and create deliberate JTAC integration flights early. The A-29 and the OV-10 operate at different speeds and handling envelopes but the tactics and target prosecution logic are shared. Second, develop a focused sustainment package for the remaining Broncos if a small number are to be retained for specialized duties such as JTAC training, target marking, or dispersed island patrols. Third, accelerate procurement or an option for follow‑on A-29 buys to close numbers shortfalls rather than extending expensive and brittle legacy sustainment efforts. Lastly, negotiate logistics contracts that include a genuine spare parts commitment up front rather than ad hoc scavenging from non‑airworthy hulks. These are practical, pilot‑driven priorities that preserve capability with acceptable lifecycle cost.
The Bronco taught a generation of Philippine aircrews how to do close air support in austere, low altitude environments. Its retirement, whenever formalized, will close a chapter in local airpower doctrine. That does not mean the end of effective CAS in the Philippines. It means a shift to platforms that are easier to sustain and that come with built in supplier support. But doctrine, tactics, techniques and procedures do not transfer automatically with the aircraft. The PAF will need to preserve the institutional knowledge the Bronco helped build and make it part of training and exercises for the Super Tucano squadrons.
For policymakers the takeaway is straightforward. If the strategic choice is a modern, maintainable light attack fleet then funding and timelines must match that choice. If the Bronco is to linger as a bridge, plan for a rational sustainment contract and a limited, well defined mission set. Letting the fleet atrophy in an ad hoc fashion will cost more in risk to troops on the ground than any short term savings.
The Bronco era has given the PAF a durable set of COIN skills. As those lessons are folded into new platforms, pilots and maintainers will carry forward what mattered most: persistence, accurate direction of fires, and close integration with ground maneuver. That legacy is the aircraft’s true retirement gift. Keep the lessons. Replace the rusted parts with reliable spares. Fly smart.