First introduced in the 1990s, the BLU-109 warhead has a one inch thick hardened steel case that can break through four to six feet of reinforced concrete. Despite its overall weight, the bomb has less than 600 pounds of explosive inside. The Air Force is in the process of purchasing a new, more reliable version of the weapon, known as the BLU-137/B.

As of August 2017, A-10s assigned to the 447th were averaging 750 strikes against ISIS every month, according to the Air Force. This makes the Warthogs “one of the most feared and combat effective aircraft in the fight,” U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Andrew Walck explained in the official news segment.