The bomb markings on the returning A-10 Thunderbolt II jets hint at the variety of weapons the Warthogs used against Iran, while the kill marks offer clues about some of the targets they hit.

On Jun. 12, 2026, 11 A-10C Thunderbolt II aircraft, belonging to the 75th Fighter Squadron of the 23rd Wing, from Moody Air Force Base, Georgia, arrived at RAF Lakenheath, UK, from Aviano Air Base, Italy, on their way back to the U.S. following their deployment to the CENTCOM AOR (Area Of Responsibility). During the deployment, they took part in Operation Epic Fury and also carried out missions over Iraq and Syria.

The Warthogs (as the A-10s are nicknamed) arrived in the UK split into four cells:

TABOR 11-13:

80-0175/FT “King Dedede”

79-0157/FT “Fox”

78-0649/FT “Reaper”

TABOR 14-16:

78-0613/FT “Diddy Kong”

80-0243/FT “Samus”

78-0583/FT “Sephiroth”

Tabor 21-23

80-0188/FT “Macho Man”

79-0095/FT “Lil Mac”

80-0273/FT “Kirby”

Tabor 24-25

81-0988/FT “Ridley”

78-0586/FT “Doc Holiday”

As per tradition, during their stay at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, the Warthogs received nose art along with bomb markings. For what deals the nicknames, based on the photos taken by our contributor and friend Stewart Jack, most appear to follow a Nintendo/Super Smash Bros. theme we had already identified from photos released by CENTCOM, with references including King Dedede, Fox, Diddy Kong, Samus, Sephiroth, Little Mac, Kirby and Ridley. Macho Man, Reaper” and Doc Holiday seem to be possible outliers from the video-games theme.

Read and see more here.