Actually it is a flying tank, just like the M-24. Shoot at them with a rifle, even with a 7.62mm mg, and you are just going to piss them off. Same as with a tank.
Hit A 'Hog or a Hind with a proper AAA weapon, be it a ZSU-30, Stinger, Strela, or an actual Honest-to-God SAM and it is going to get killed, just like if you hit an MBT with a proper high end AT weapon the tank will get killed.
The problem that far too many fans of whatever platform one chooses to name is that they fall in love with the good and forget the rest.
All of that brings me to my COIN choice from the days of lore: The A-1 Skyraider. Double the war load of any of the modern options, tough as an old piece of rawhide, incredible loiter time.
Calbear, I agree with your analysis, and I also love the skyraider. For that matter if you want CAS and if needed COIN, you need aircraft with A before their name not F. Look at examples of aircraft that have successfully kept our groundpounders safe in the last couple of Wars, AD-1, A4, A6, A7, AV8, and A10. The main reason is that they were designed with this role in mind. An F type is optimized for air to air combat, and those with multi role capability, have pilots primarily trained to get kill marks on their aircraft not bomb siluhetes. Here is the sad reality, if a must protect platform such as an awacs or tanker gets in trouble, the multi role type will drop their ordenance, go air to air an forget the ground guys. A dedicated A platform has no choice but to continue air to mud.
The crop duster mod shown looks dangerous, I would like to look at the specs, but self sealing tanks, some armor protection for the pilot and an ejection seat , still look like a must to me