The A-10 Warthog Just Flew Its Final Sortie From The Base That Trained Its Pilots For 50 Years

In April 2026, the US Air Force closed the training pipeline that had produced every Fairchild Republic A-10 pilot it ever fielded. The 357th Fighter Squadron graduated its last class of Thunderbolt II students at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in April. That same week, and at that same base, an A-10 flying combat search and rescue escort over Iran took enemy fire, kept flying, and helped bring a downed fighter pilot home before its own pilot was forced to eject over Kuwait.