So There I Was

In this first of two shows this week, we welcome back Adm. Mike Manazir “Nasty” to talk about his new book, Learn How to Lead to Win – 33 Powerful Stories and Leadership Lessons . You may recall two shows with him before – Here’s to Bug Roach Episode 17 , and Best Job in the Galaxy Episode 18 . In this and tomorrow’s episode you will gain insight into the reason...

Come ride along with us and feel like you’re on the Blue Angels Team for the next hour. This is the last of five shows with Lawman. We recorded this in late fall, but in order not to put five shows in a row with the same guest, we held this in abeyance until now. This is arguably the funniest of the shows with Lawman. He tells us about learning to fly the various maneuvers like the Fleur de...

Panther checked in with us this week to talk about how he knew, before going to the Naval Academy, that he wasn’t interested in flying. After spending a few frosty nights in the woods of VA in January, he quickly reconsidered his flight options. After flight school he flew more than 100 missions in Vietnam in the A-6 Intruder with VMA-(AW)-533. He describes that time in -533 as the best job...

OAviators: Our Little Horror Story In This Gripping Episode, We Delve Into The Harrowing Tale Of Aviators Our Little Horror Story That Unfolded During The Infamous Southwest Airlines 1380 Flight. Join Us As We Explore The Courage And Skill Displayed By The Crew In The Face Of Adversity. The Story Of Southwest Airlines 1380 Is Not Just A Tale Of Survival But Also A Testament To The Resilience And E...

We are joined by “Bonnie” who gained attention the hard way back in 2018 when she and her first officer saved the lives of 148 people after her Southwest Airlines 737 experienced an uncontained engine failure which shattered a window, fatally injuring a passenger. Her book about that day and her life experiences which prepared her to to meet the challenges she faced that day is called...

This is the second show with Dos Gringos – Trip and Snooze joined us to talk more about their music, their experiences in combat and their latest project to help veteran performers and composers get a shot at a big break without having to quit their day job first! If you’d like to help out with this worthy cause, please visit them at Operation Encore . This is the last show of the year...

This week, Dos Gringos join us for some discussion about their music and their flying careers in the F-16. It was fun to learn how they became the Dos Gringos and hearing about the “Highway of Tears.” We also chatted about their time flying Southern Watch, Op Enduring Freedom, and Op Iraqi Freedom. We hear some of their songs during the show and some of the back stories to them. This e...

Our second hour with Coast Guard H-65 Pilot “Sticks” begins with a funny story about a wildly specific “target” for their Search & Rescue “SAR” mission. The things get real as he talks about 9-11 and how things went for them that week.   What we (and most people) would consider wildly dangerous is just another Wednesday afternoon for your Coast Guard aviators. They do things every day as...

Coast Guard pilot and medical professional, “Sticks,” joins us to talk about his path to a commission in the Coast Guard by way of the Merchant Marine Academy. He talks Leadership Training and some of the funny things that happened along the way; like losing his sword as the Regimental Executive Officer in his senior year – and totally gooning the drill commands – and how h...

We are proud to welcome our first helicopter pilot, “GT” this week: Capt. Wayne Tunick USN (ret) author of the book “ American Quest ” The book is a fun read and traces the career of a young man who had never considered the military as he serves his country and his fellow man. GT had a successful career as a Navy Helicopter pilot who learned early on the seriousness of avia...

What’s the worst part about being a Blue Angel? Get the unbelievable answer here. And what’s the best part? Lawman says it’s completing a successful tour with the team. We say the corollary is the camaraderie that comes with professionals doing what appears to be impossible and making it look easy, all while holding each other to the highest standard, and of course tormenting eac...

Our third show with Lawman is a fun one. He opens the show describing how embarrassed he felt living the good life in Qatar while getting combat pay – though he did have to go to Afghanistan to prevent the outbreak of violence between the Marines and the Air Force! Then we back into how he was serving as the Full-Time Support (FTS) Officer for the Marine Reserve squadron in Willow Grove, PA....

Fatty joins the show this week to talk about how he became a Guardsman – and the benefits thereof. He tells how plans went awry when the BRAC (Base Realignment and Closure Commission) got rid of his F-15 Squadron while he was in flight school and how he managed to adapt and overcome. When he found himself in Afghanistan over Christmas of ~2010 Fatty found entertainment in providing roofies t...

In our second hour with Lawman, things get  real . This episode is not entirely comprised of our usual light-hearted hijinks and buffoonery – though we throw some in for good measure. Lawman details months of training aboard the USS Nassau, and losing a squadron mate, Buick, during a night training sortie in the lead-up to Gulf War I. Spending months aboard the boat before the war witho...

Lawman sat with us for more than 5 hours to discuss his unique career before becoming a Blue Angel; and how he got to fly almost every plane in the Marine Corps inventory in Afghanistan.  We will break this into about five shows  and likely intersperse other shows in between. Lawman is a  natural storyteller;  he had us  howling with laughter  and  choking up in...

Double-L of the “Hollywood Guard” regales us with stories from Marine bootcamp to doing really dangerous things like fighting fires with an airplane… “More dangerous than combat.” When you are flying and you feel the heat of the fire it causes you to reconsider the intelligence of your life-choices. Getting to Bagram Air Base, Double-L soon learned he was on the botto...

We are joined by Author, Viper & Phantom Driver, and exceptional story-teller, “Jedi” this week. Jedi tells of the adventures of flying the Phantom and the Viper in the Air National Guard. What’s amazing this week is how a chance meeting in a Navy O-Club bar comes full circle almost 40 years later. And Jedi then relates another incident where he was accused of ‘buzzing&...

This week we are joined by “Curly” of the VMA-231 Ace of Spades squadron. Curly closes the loop on some of the fun discussed in episode 15 – “Sir, Don’t Eat the Donuts” and other escapades of the LRF. Curly also tells us about some of his 38 combat missions in Gulf War I and how he survived in spite of himself. He sheds light on the adrenalin flow and narrow foc...

Another first for the show! This week “Father” joins Fig and Repete in the first Air Force pilot interview on So There I Was. Father flew the F-15 Eagle acquiring 3800+ hours and was the Squadron Commander in St. Louis, MO when he finished his career. Father had the misfortune of being the witness to an accident so mystifying at the time the Air Force Grounded the entire fleet of Eagle...

This show is a little different than our others in that it isn’t directly about aviation. But, it IS about a right of passage most Naval Aviators had to go through before being commissioned as officers and starting flight school We are joined by Marine Corps 1st Sgt Retired – “Gunny-Go” – A shortened version of his name. Many a Marine and Navy pilot in the 1980s were...

This is the second half of our time with “Nasty;” the former Commanding Officer of VF-31, The USS Sacramento, The USS Nimitz and a Strike Group aboard the USS Eisenhower. He tells of the time he ejected from an F-14 over the shark-infested waters of the Pacific. He describes why “Nuke-School” is hard – and the benefits thereof. And he tells us what the “Best Job...

Here’s to Bug Roach! Cdr. Roach was a legendary LSO and mentor to our guest this week and next: Nasty. Hear why he was so legendary and the poignant event right before Nasty was presented the “Bug Roach Award” for the LSO of the year. Nasty is the LSO who waived Yogi & Master aboard the Lincoln that fateful day in the summer of ’91 when Yogi came as close to ejecting fr...

Hear directly from two of the pilots who flew the Harriers you see in the 1994 Arnold Schwarzenegger / Jamie Lee Curtis hit movie True Lies. Director James Cameron had a clear idea of what he wanted. He took good care of our Marines who were there to support the filming and made sure they were treated well and had time with their families over the holidays. Buggs and Moto join us to talk about the...

Shiny joins us to tell how there wasn’t a Lieutenant’s Protective Association, but rather a Lieutenant’s Revolutionary Front that took action to get even with the senior officers in the squadron who were relentless in their hazing of all the new lieutenants. He also recounts their time in Saudi Arabia and flying combat sorties in Gulf War I; getting sent to the training command b...

Yogi and Master join us this week to tell their first-hand account of one of the most terrifying landings on an aircraft carrier in Naval Aviation history. Period. What started as a routine mission on Yogi’s birthday was supposed to end with Yogi becoming a “Centurion” as he got his 100th “trap” aboard an aircraft carrier. Instead, it turned into one of the most harro...