The A-10A Thunderbolt II was designed to counter Warsaw Pact armoured divisions had they invaded NATO territory. The unit that was to be in the vanguard of blunting such an attack was the 81st Tactical Fighter Wing (TFW). The first three A-10As for the wing arrived at RAF Bentwaters, Suffolk, in August 1978 for maintenance training. The six-squadron 81st TFW was to become the largest fighter wing in the US Air Force and the nearby base of RAF Woodbridge was home to two of the squadrons.
The 78th Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS), 91st and 92nd TFSs had been assigned to the wing since its arrival in the UK in 1952. In October 1978, the 510th TFS was added, the 509th TFS in October 1979 and the 511th TFS in January 1980.
The 78th and 91st TFS operated from RAF Woodbridge and the other squadrons from RAF Bentwaters.
Major Bill Rial first arrived with the 81st TFW on August 27, 1987, but his journey in the air force started in 1972 when he was commissioned and, after rotary-wing training, served with the 40th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron (ARRS) in Southeast Asia flying the Kaman HH-43 Huskie. He was subsequently with the 39th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Wing (ARRW) at Tyndall Air Force Base (AFB), Florida on the Sikorsky…
