[Eli5] How does recoil affect a warplane’s flight?

Question

From the book “What if?” by Randall Munroe:

> The GAU-8 Avenger fires up to 60 1-pound bullets a *second*. It produces almost 5 tons of recoil force, which is crazy considering that it’s mounted in a type of plane (the A-10 “Warthog”) whose two engines produce only 4 tons of thrust each. If you put two of them in one aircraft, and fired both guns forward while opening up the throttle, the guns would win and you’d accelerate backward.

I guess I never really thought about it until just now, but… do pilots have to compensate for the recoil when they fire their weaponry?

How *does* – or doesn’t – the recoil of their ordnance affect the planes mid-flight?

In: 4

Answer 1

When the gun is on, the plane is slowing down. That’s it. The pilots train a LOT to control the pattern of the bullets and ensure they hit their target.

Yes, the pilot is compensating for the recoil while flying.