An American A-10 has returned from deployment in the Middle East bearing two Shahed-type drone kill markings, suggesting that the aircraft has been directly involved in counter-UAS combat during recent operations under US Central Command.
Images captured by aviation photographers showed the aircraft, callsign TABOR61, landing at an airbase in New England on 11 October with two stylised drone silhouettes and “Ares” nose art freshly painted on the fuselage.
TABOR61 (mixed the callsigns on the first flight 😅) arriving at PSM after a trip from Lajes! pic.twitter.com/pJwwJAgtJL
— Alex (@mhtplanes) October 10, 2025
The photographs indicate that the Warthog had recently completed a six-month rotation within the CENTCOM area of responsibility, supporting Operation Inherent Resolve.
The US Air Force has not confirmed any specific engagements. However, the markings imply that the A-10C may have successfully intercepted Iranian-made one-way attack drones. Shahed-type systems have been widely used by proxy forces against coalition and commercial targets.
The A-10’s combination of endurance, precision sensors, and versatile ordnance makes it unusually effective in this role. Unlike fast jets optimised for high-speed interception, the A-10 can remain on station for extended periods and prosecute multiple slow-moving aerial targets in a single sortie.
Equipped with laser-guided 70 mm rockets (APKWS II) and proximity-fused munitions, the aircraft can engage fragile drone targets without resorting to expensive air-to-air missiles. These characteristics align closely with current US and allied efforts to develop scalable responses to massed drone attacks.
Although the U.S. Air Force has continued to phase out parts of the A-10 fleet, its suitability for persistent surveillance and inexpensive strike roles may keep it relevant as drone warfare keeps on hitting the news.
So peace in the Middle East for the first time after 3000 years not quite the reality portrayed then.
A US President declaring peace in such a way is a novel idea. It will either work or it wont. Why bother with complicated agreements.
If it does work no one will be more pleased than I. If it doesn’t work what then Mr T.
I think Israel has been at peace several times in the past. For a good year at a time, once or twice.
Maybe this time peace will last a bit longer.
And who knows, maybe the trend is their friend. Maybe between this so called peace, plus the Abraham Accords, there will be a move by Arab nations (and slightly less probable, Iran) towards some sort of peace with Israel.
If the admittedly unlikely move by the leaders of Hebron to make a separate peace with Israel works, or simply moves the conversation a few increments down the road…
Anything is possible, even the most unlikely of events.