The Allied Airpower Podcast

In this episode of The Allied Airpower Podcast , Jose “Houdini” Davis takes listeners inside Ramstein Flag , one of NATO Allied Air Command’s most important large-scale air exercises. Ramstein Flag is not just about aircraft, bases, or hardware. It is about NATO practicing how to fight as one air component in an Article 5 scenario — across nations, across geography, and under pressure. The episode...

In this special documentary episode of The Allied Airpower Podcast , Jose “Houdini” Davis takes listeners inside NATO Airpower through a documentary produced by NATO’s talented multimedia team based in Brussels. Filmed across the Alliance and partially during Ramstein Flag 25, the episode breaks down one of NATO’s most complex missions: how Allied Air Forces would secure the skies in crisis or con...

Across these seven updates, NATO’s air and maritime activity in May 2026 points to a clear operational theme: the Alliance is strengthening its ability to operate as an integrated, distributed, and resilient force across multiple regions at once. From the Mediterranean to the Baltic, from Sweden and Finland to Norway and Greece, the focus is not only on presence, but on readiness, interoperability...

In this episode of The Allied Airpower Podcast , Jose “Houdini” Davis sits down with Lieutenant General Juan Pablo Sánchez de Lara, Commander of NATO’s Combined Air Operations Centre-Torrejón , during an in-person visit to Torrejón Air Base in Spain. CAOC Torrejón is one of NATO Allied Air Command’s key operational command and control nodes , helping task, coordinate, and execute Allied air missio...

Across these five updates, Allied Air Command’s spring 2026 message is clear: NATO is moving from a primarily reactive air policing posture toward a more integrated, distributed, and deliberately prepared air defence model. The emphasis is not on one isolated activity, but on how command leadership, multinational planning, training infrastructure, experimentation, and large-scale exercises all con...

In this episode of The Allied Airpower Podcast , Kea Alishia Phlatts sits down with Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, Chair of the NATO Military Committee, during his visit to Allied Air Command at Ramstein, 25-26 March 2026 . As NATO’s senior military officer and principal military adviser to the Secretary General, Admiral Dragone sits at the center of the Alliance’s military decision-shaping proces...

Across these nine updates, NATO’s air enterprise is doing three things at once: sharpening high-end combat skills, tightening Integrated Air and Missile Defence (IAMD) on the eastern flank, and cycling Allied detachments through Baltic and Black Sea operating locations to keep a persistent, credible air policing posture in place. We start in the United Kingdom with Cobra Warrior 2026-1, the Royal...

In this episode, we track six connected stories that show NATO’s air enterprise accelerating integration from the High North to the Black Sea — pairing persistent presence with scalable deterrence and multi-domain readiness. We begin in Finland, where a NATO AWACS aircraft conducts its first mission in Finnish airspace , a milestone after Finland’s accession that expands long-range surveillance an...

Not every NATO mission begins with aircraft in the air. Some begin with relationships. In this episode of The Allied Airpower Podcast , ‘Houdini’ spoke with Major Joseph Plata of NATO Allied Air Command’s A9 Military Partnership Branch about one of the Alliance’s less visible but strategically important missions: building and sustaining relationships with partner nations. It is work that happens l...

In this episode, Jose “Houdini” Davis breaks down one of the most practical mission sets in modern Allied airpower: F2T2 — Find, Fix, Track, and Target . Using AIRCOM’s 5 March 2026 Eastern Sentry mission as the central example, the episode explains how NATO connects sensors, command and control, and decision-making across multiple domains to turn detection into operational effect. This is not jus...

In this episode, we track six connected developments that show NATO’s air enterprise building readiness at speed — from advanced tactical training in Spain, to new operational frameworks in the High North, to live deterrence activity and counter-drone integration on the eastern flank. We begin at Albacete Air Base, where nine Allies complete the year’s first Tactical Leadership Programme flying co...

In this episode, we cover six developments across NATO’s air and intelligence enterprise — a snapshot of an Alliance modernising national air capabilities, strengthening command-and-control and planning on the eastern flank, and sustaining 24/7 airspace security from the Baltics to the High North. We begin with Croatia’s transition to a modern national air policing capability , as the Croatian Air...

In this episode, we cover six developments across NATO’s air and multi-domain activity — a snapshot of an Alliance modernising its command-and-control backbone, sharpening readiness on the eastern flank, and accelerating fifth-generation interoperability across Europe. We begin at Ramstein Air Base for a milestone in fifth-generation sustainment and Allied integration: a cross-servicing weapons lo...

In this episode, we explore six major developments across NATO’s air and multi-domain operations — a snapshot of an Alliance sharpening its readiness, accelerating integration, and strengthening deterrence across the Euro-Atlantic region. We begin in the United States, where the Royal Netherlands Air and Space Force completed a demanding deployment to Idaho for Exercise Gunfighter Flag 25-02. Twel...

In this episode, Jose “Houdini” Davis sits down with U.S. Lieutenant Colonel Brennan “Thor” Gallagher, one of Allied Air Command’s key operational leads behind Eastern Sentry , NATO’s newest vigilance activity along the Alliance’s Eastern Flank. A U.S. Air Force Weapons School graduate, rescue C-130 pilot, and senior planner in AIRCOM’s A35 directorate, Thor brings deep operational and strategic e...

In this episode, we explore five major Allied Air Command developments that demonstrate NATO’s enduring focus on leadership, readiness, and collective deterrence across the Euro-Atlantic region. First, across four host nations in northern Europe, NATO conducted its annual nuclear deterrence exercise Steadfast Noon . Up to seventy aircraft from fourteen Allied countries participated in the training...

In this special episode, Jose “Houdini” Davis sits down with Air Marshal Sir Johnny Stringer, Acting Commander of NATO Allied Air Command, for a candid and wide-ranging conversation that bridges three decades of airpower, leadership, and strategy. A former Typhoon Wing Commander with over 3,000 flight hours, Air Marshal Stringer has led across every level — from cockpit to command table — serving...

In this episode, we explore five major Allied developments that underscore NATO’s ongoing commitment to deterrence, vigilance, and integrated Airpower across the Euro-Atlantic region. First, in southern Europe, Allied and Partner Tiger Squadrons gathered in Portugal for the annual NATO Tiger Meet . Over eighty aircraft and fifteen hundred personnel from nine NATO nations — plus Austria and Switzer...

In this episode, we take listeners beyond the atmosphere to explore NATO’s newest operational domain — space. Joining him is U.S. Colonel Jonathan L. Whitaker, Chief of Staff at NATO’s Combined Forces Space Component Command and Director of the NATO Space Operations Center at Ramstein Air Base, Germany. With more than two decades of experience in U.S. and Allied space operations, Colonel Whitaker...

In this episode, we explore three major Allied developments that underscore NATO’s commitment to readiness, partnership, and deterrence across Europe. First, at Allied Air Command Headquarters in Ramstein, fourteen Partner nations gathered for the annual Partner Air Chiefs’ Conference. Acting Commander Air Marshall Johnny Stringer led discussions on Agile Combat Employment, Counter–Unmanned Aerial...

Recorded at the NATO Communicators Conference in Athens, Greece this episode explores the role of Strategic Communications (STRATCOM) in today’s complex information environment. We sit down with Wing Commander Tim Barlow, former STRATCOM Director at NATO Allied Air Command and now at SHAPE’s J10 Directorate, to unpack what STRATCOM really means — linking presence, posture, profile, and words into...

This week highlighted a series of major NATO Airpower events across Europe and the High North during September 2025. We begin with Cobra Warrior 25-2, where the Royal Air Force is hosting Allies Canada, Italy, Germany, the UK, and the United States at RAF Waddington . This large-scale exercise pushes aircrews to their limits, sharpening interoperability and readiness in complex, high-threat enviro...

The Allied Airpower Podcast is committed to telling the true stories of the individuals who comprise the 32-member Alliance. Are you interested in sharing your story of service to your nation and your contributions to NATO? Contact us and be a guest on the podcast! In this powerful episode, The Allied Airpower Podcast shifts focus, from the conceptual to the frontlines, spotlighting the Airmen who...

This week’s news roundup episode spotlights five stories that showcase NATO’s commitment to vigilance, unity, and airpower excellence across the Alliance. In Poland and the Baltic region, NATO’s Air Policing mission responded swiftly to multiple airspace violations , including Russian drones and reconnaissance flights. Scrambles by Dutch, Spanish, French, and German fighters demonstrated NATO’s co...

NATO Days in Ostrava , in the Czech Republic, is the biggest security show in Europe, and in this special episode — part of a two-part series — we had the special privilege to chat with two important leaders organizing this exposition of NATO Airpower: Colonel (Ret.) David Webb (USAF), longtime B-52 electronic warfare officer and current North American representative for Jagello 2000, and Colonel...