The world best A-10's pilot met at Fort Drum in Upper State New York during two days in May 2002 to compete in HAWGSMOKE 2002. Held on May 16 and 17, this worldwide competition known as "Hawgsmoke" was hosted by the Connecticut Air National Guard, the comp's previous winning team. Previously held at Alpena CRTC in Michigan, this was the first time that the competition was held at Fort Drum, NY. 62 A-10 "Thunderbolt II" close air support aircraft filled part of the ramp at Wheeler Sack Army Airfield in Fort Drum. Representing all but one of the USAF's units, crews and aircraft from 17 teams from as far away as Germany, Korea and Alaska, competed in Hawgsmoke 2002. Teams from the 81st FS/52nd FW at Spangdalhem AB, 25th FS/51st FW at Osan AB and the 355th FS/354th FW at Eielson AFB did not bring their own aircraft and flew in the competition with aircraft from the 110th FW, 103rd FW and 104th FW respectively.

Hawgsmoke 2002 focused on accurately dropping BDU-33s practice bombs, firing AGM-65 "Maverick" missile and strafing proficiency with the 30 mm Gatling gun. Individual and team scores were added by judges to determine winners based on their accuracy to drop bombs and fire their gun at targets on Range 35, also known as Det.1, 174th FW. The range is only 4 miles North of the airfield. The first day was a tactical competition with each team simulating a Maverick attack against a target on Range 35 with controlled timing. Following recovery at Fort Drum, every aircraft was refueled and loaded with BDU-33 practice bombs for the second part of the competition. The weather improved quite a bit for the second day when teams flew to the range to drop BDUs and fire the A-10's Gatling gun against ground targets. Judging was done by comparing the digital tape showing objectively the details of the mission to the video tape from inside the aircraft showing what the pilot and its instruments saw to determine accuracy. The awards ceremony took place on May 18. During the ceremony, Lt.Col. D.Peabody from the CT ANG, explained to the audience the reasons behind the decision to continue with the competition after the events of September 11. The first reason was because the relatively small A-10 community could benefit from the personal relationships that competition fosters as they work together on tactics employed in military hot spots across the world. "The other is to send the message that we don't have a lot of smart weapons on the A-10, but we have a lot of smart pilots and maintenance people who can deliver actual ordnance onto actual targets." said Lt.Col. Peabody.

The four member team from the 47th Fighter Squadron at Barksdale AFB, La., swept many trophies and the honor as the world best overall A-10 team. Led by Major Marc Olson, the team was composed of the same pilots as in the 2000's competition. Other members of the 47th's team were Maj. B.Glick, Maj. J.Macauley and Maj.T.McClain. All four are full time instructors and have accumulated 10,000 plus hours and combat experience from everywhere the Hawg has flown. The 47th FS had finished second as a team in 2000 and decided to bring some "Big Game Experience" to take care of unfinished business! While many units sent maintenance personnel, the 47th FS was not asked to send any and according to Major Macauley, they had a huge part of the winning effort. "There's no doubt in my mind that we had the best, most reliable jets on the ramp. With the new computer aided bomb delivery system of the A-10, it's imperative that the jets are boarsighted properly. However, if the jet breaks between boarsight and competition, you fly a wild-card, like a lot of the other teams." said Maj. Macauley. The 47th FS's strategy was carefully planned and much attention was given to the tactical profile and the conventional range profile. "Not much time was spent on the Maverick attack since it is something practiced regularly by the squadron. The timed CBU attack was much more challenging. We felt we had to overcome the tremendous "Bomb Field Advantage" of the New England units that use the range regularly and knew exactly where the targets were and looked like. Finding the target was challenging, especially with the narrow parameter window allowed and the reduced visibility on the day of the competition." added Maj. Macauley. Contrary to other units in the Northeast and the Midwest, it was the first time to Fort Drum for the four members of the 47th FS.

The 47th FS's team avoided a disaster during their flight on the way to the competition. The team had flown to Wright-Patterson AFB, OH. on Wednesday night and were ready to fly to Fort Drum on Thursday morning. Just when the four A-10s were taking the runway for takeoff, number 2 saw that the lead aircraft's engine oil cap was left open by the transient personnel at WPAFB.. The problem was fixed quickly and the team was on their way to Fort Drum, helped by favorable winds to be on time. The 47th Fighter Squadron team results were the following; Top Overall Team first place, Top Tactical Team third place, Top Hawgsmoke 2002 Crud Team, Top Low Angle High Drag Bomber first place (Maj. B.Glick), Top Visual Level Bomber first place (Maj. J.Macauley), Top Bomber second place (Maj. J.Macauley), Top Overall Pilot second place (Maj. J.Macauley) and Top Overall Pilot third place (Maj. B.Glick).

The two A-10 units based in New England did very well in the competition. The 118th Fighter Squadron from the Connecticut Air National Guard at Bradley IAP, Ct. was recognized as the Top Bomber Team while the 131st Fighter Squadron from the Massachusetts Air National Guard at Barnes ANGB, Ma. won the Top Tactical Team Award. Support for the competition was provided by the 174th Fighter Wing of the New York Air National Guard and its detachments at Fort Drum. This unit based at Syracuse, NY. has been operating the Forward Operating Location (FOL) in Fort Drum since 1984 when it was flying the A-10 for Close Air Support. Members from the 174th LGS, Det.1 and Det.2 were assisted by other maintenance people sent by most units participating in the competition. It was amazing to see members of different units working together on the flightline and at the EOR.
"Again this year, Hawgsmoke was an opportunity for the worldwide community of "Hawgdrivers" to get together, honor those that went before us, compete with those currently flying, and prepare for the future. No other community could pull it off! As Hawgdrivers, we share a special bond as "Mutts of the Air Force" and we pride ourselves on our loyalty to the jet and our fealty to the community." concluded Major Macauley.