Checking Them Thrice:

A-10 Warthog pilots do not employ weapons in Southwest Asia without getting targeting information from a Joint Terminal Attack Controller, says Lt. Col. Joseph Badalis, JTAC commander at Bagram AB, Afghanistan. And, then, at least two Warthog pilots verify the coordinates. “The coordinates we are given are always double and triple checked,” explains Capt. Brian Dresser, an A-10 pilot with the 354th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron. SSgt. Craig Seals reports that Dresser also noted the extensive training Warthog pilots endure— “about six months in training just learning how to fly the A-10; then once you get to your first operational squadron, you spend another two or three months doing [close air support] mission qualification training.”