Visiting the Terrible Termites and their Hawgs at Davis-Monthan - The flying photos
Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2025 6:26 pm
During my time visiting the 47th FS 'Terrrible Termites' at Davis Monthan AFB, I need some flying shots for the article and of course capturing some Hogs on the range. This all happened on the same day with an RV over Ruby Fuzzy Military Operating Area (MOA) south of Tucson then nearly a 3hr drive to Barry M Goldwater range. The MOA enables pilots to fly as low as 100ft and the Instructor Pilot who had organised my itinerary demonstrated some really skillful flying by making me the target. The adrenalin was pumping when you get an A-10 heading straight for you!
Then it was a race to the range as I needed to be there for 1400. I made it just in time to see a F-35 four ship perform a show of force over the tower. Then it was time for Hogman 1 + 2 (Hogman 1 - Instructor Pilot, Hogman 2 - Student) arrive on the range where they proceed to drop BDU-33's and fire rockets. Then Hogman 1 as briefed carried out three shallow angle strafes before carrying out a few show of force flypasts for me. Typically the Hog being flown was 78-0720, an ex-Maryland ANG 104th FS which is now permanently at D-M being used by both the Termites and 357th FS Dragons. What makes this airframe more of a hybrid is its port side rudder which still retains the markings of the 25th FS Draggins.
So on that day a Termite IP was flying a Maryland Hog with a Draggins rudder over the skies of Arizona. The photo of the Hog firing the gun was still published in my article even though it wasn't a Termite marked airframe.
Hope you enjoy.
Neil.
Then it was a race to the range as I needed to be there for 1400. I made it just in time to see a F-35 four ship perform a show of force over the tower. Then it was time for Hogman 1 + 2 (Hogman 1 - Instructor Pilot, Hogman 2 - Student) arrive on the range where they proceed to drop BDU-33's and fire rockets. Then Hogman 1 as briefed carried out three shallow angle strafes before carrying out a few show of force flypasts for me. Typically the Hog being flown was 78-0720, an ex-Maryland ANG 104th FS which is now permanently at D-M being used by both the Termites and 357th FS Dragons. What makes this airframe more of a hybrid is its port side rudder which still retains the markings of the 25th FS Draggins.
So on that day a Termite IP was flying a Maryland Hog with a Draggins rudder over the skies of Arizona. The photo of the Hog firing the gun was still published in my article even though it wasn't a Termite marked airframe.
Hope you enjoy.
Neil.
