An in-depth look at why for air forces conducting LAS missions in uncontested airspace, single-engine turboprops remain the light attack/ ISR aircraft of choice. The term counter insurgency (COIN), as applied to aircraft, dates back to the Vietnam conflict when North American Rockwell's OV-10 BRONCO won a competition for a light armed reconnaissance aircraft for the USMC and US Army in 1964. Used operationally in Vietnam from the beginning of 1968, the OV-10 was also acquired by the USAF. The twin-turboprop aircraft was then withdrawn from US service in 1995 and never replaced, although that may be changed by the current USAF Light Experimental Examination (LAE) programme.
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