When the Warthog became Snowhog

The only difference between the two ‘hogs’ depicted in the photos of this post is color. A snowhog is covered in arctic camouflage and a warthog is all gray or green. An important piece of early A-10 history. Ground crewmen perform maintenance on the two A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft being used during exercise Cool Snow Hog ’82-1. On December 18, 1981, two A-10 aircraft from the Fairchild-Republic factory in Hagerstown, Maryland, arrived at Eielson Air Force Base (AFB). The article "Arctic camouflage makes Eielson's hogs unique" by Don Fenton, 354th Fighter Wing Historian, explains that the aircraft tail numbers of the first two A-10s sent to Eielson were 80-221 and 80-222. Ground crewmen load a Mark 82 bomb aboard the Snowhog aircraft during exercise Cool Snow Hog ’82-1. Any guesses what's the difference between the two hogs featured in the photos of this post? Left side view of two A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft, one with the camouflage paint scheme, in flight over frozen terrain during exercise Cool Snow Hog ’82-1. The two "hogs" are identical in every way save color. A warthog is completely gray or green, while a snowdog is covered in arctic camouflage. So the two A-10s go by the nicknames Snowhog and Warthog, respectively. An air-to-air right-side view of two A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft, one with camouflage paint, participating in exercise Cool Snow Hog ’82-1. Nevertheless, 80-221 was repainted in an arctic camouflage scheme shortly after landing at Eielson. This was carried out as a test for an upcoming exercise known as Operation Cool Snow Hog. An air-to-air view of a camouflaged A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft, participating in exercise Cool Snow Hog ’82-1. From March 8 to 16, 1982, a forward operating place in Kotzebue, Alaska, hosted the exercise. Two A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft from the 18th Tactical Fighter Squadron arrive at Eielson to participate in exercise Cool Snow Hog ’82-1. The Air Force conducted its first forward-basing A-10 test in Alaska with Cool Snow Hog. The plan established that the Air Force would support the 3rd Scout Battalion of the Alaska Army National Guard by conducting sixteen close-air support missions. Overhead view of an A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft, with a camouflage paint scheme, parked on the apron beside a Beech C-12 aircraft. The Snowhog is being used during exercise Cool Snow Hog ’82-1. The forward operating location concept was put to the test during the next few years with a variety of operational readiness exercises and major joint forces exercises like BRIM FROST, but the exercises were never again referred to as Cool Snow Hog activities. It is important to remember that this paint scheme was merely an experiment. The Air Force never fully adopted the scheme, thus A-10s never flew operationally long-term in the Arctic scheme. Some reports claim that up to three more A-10s were painted in this manner, however, official documents have not yet been found to corroborate this information. All the same, the Hogs looked great. Photo by SSGT Bill Thompson / U.S. Air Force.