Patrick Roegies, Paul Gross and Ben Gorski recently spoke to Major Sky ‘Comet’ Lesh of the 47th Fighter Squadron ‘Dogpatchers’ about the objectives of the latest Exercise Hawgsmoke – possibly the last large-scale gathering of A-10 units

“Brrrrrrrrrrt… brrrrrrrt..!” The silence over the Barry M Goldwater Range in Arizona is shattered by the unique sound of 65 shells per second leaving the Gatling GAU-8 cannon of a Republic A-10C Thunderbolt II. It is a sight, but mainly a sound, that anyone who has ever witnessed it will remember forever. And many such memories were made during the 2024 editionof the biennial US Air Force Hawgsmoke gunnery competition. For four decades, the A-10 has been a proven and reliable platform for the combat air support (CAS) role. During the First Gulf War (1990-1991) the A-10 proved its value in an actual combat scenario. With air superiority as an umbrella the A-10 ensured ground troops could advance by taking out any potential threat opposing the coalition forces. Some 25 years later, the aircraft still fulfils an importantrole in CAS with no newcomer in sight. The A-10 community gathers every two years for Exercise Hawgsmoke with the intention to share experiences, align tactics and successfully complete the Hawgsmoke competition.