From Vipers to Warthogs

Under BRAC 2005, the Arkansas Air National Guard’s 188th Fighter Wing at Fort Smith, Ark., has to trade its F-16 Vipers for A-10 Warthogs, a change expected to begin this October, reports the Arkansas News Bureau. Unlike many of their fellow Air Guardsmen, the 188th FW airmen do not have to give up manned aircraft, but there is a world of difference between the two fighters. The wing’s pilots begin training on the Warthog in October, and the maintainers and weapons loaders in January 2007.