As the USAF’s A-10C Demonstration Team embark on their final season, Tom Kaminski looks at the 40-year history of the famous A-10C Thunderbolt II or Warthog
Air Combat Command’s A-10C Thunderbolt II Demonstration Team made a final visit to the Warthog’s birthplace on May 23, 2024, when a pair of jets touched down at Republic Airport, East Farmingdale, New York. Before ending operations at the airport in 1987, Fairchild Republic produced two YA-10s and 713 A-10As for the USAF, with the final delivery taking place in March 1984.
Between 1931 and 1987, the facilities were operated by Seversky Aircraft, Republic Aviation and Fairchild Republic. Although the footprint of the once sprawling factory is now occupied by a shopping mall, several of the original buildings survive. These include Hangar 2, which houses the American Air Power Museum and its warbirds. The collection includes examples of the Republic F-84E Thunderjet, F-84F Thunderstreak, RF-84F Thunderflash, F-105D Thunderchief and A-10A. The museum hosted the demo team’s final visit to Long Island, which was associated with the 2024 Bethpage Air Show at Jones Beach State Park in Wantagh. During the two-day event the demo team pe…
