Saber Strike 18 is the eighth iteration of the long-standing U.S. Army Europe-led cooperative training exercise designed to enhance interoperability among allies and regional partners.

Taken on Jun. 7, 2018 the beautiful footage in this post shows U.S. Air Force (USAF) A-10 Thunderbolt II “Warthogs”, assigned to 107th Fighter Squadron (FS), conduct austere landing training on an old abandoned runway with support from 321st Special Tactics Squadron Combat Controllers, during exercise Saber Strike 18 in Haapsalu, Estonia.

Noteworthy the Thunderbolt II can be serviced and operated from austere bases with limited facilities near battle areas. Many of the aircraft’s parts are interchangeable left and right, including the engines, main landing gear and vertical stabilizers.

Specifically designed for close air support, its combination of large and varied ordnance load, long loiter time, accurate weapons delivery, austere field capability, and survivability has proven invaluable to the U.S. and its allies.

Saber Strike 18 is the eighth iteration of the long-standing U.S. Army Europe-led cooperative training exercise designed to enhance interoperability among allies and regional partners. This year’s exercise will take place June 3-15, focusing on improving land and air operational capabilities with an additional key objective to train with NATO’s Forward Presence (eFP) battlegroups.

This article by Dario Leone originally appeared on The Aviation Geek Club in 2018.

Image: DVIDS Hub.